What is a SIPP?

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A Self-Invested Personal Pension (SIPP) is a type of personal pension that lets you choose your own investments from a wide range of options.

A SIPP is typically set up by you, rather than your employer. You can make regular payments into it, or put money in as and when you want to. You can also transfer other pension plans into it, although this won’t be right for everyone.

When you pay into a pension plan, you're investing your money in the hope it will increase in value over time, although it's important to remember there’s no guarantee. The value can go down as well as up, and it is possible that you could get back less than you paid in.

You can start taking your money from age 55, rising to 57 from 6 April 2028. Most SIPPs will let you access your money flexibly if you wish, meaning you can choose how much you take and when you take it. Find out more about different options for taking your money.

What are the benefits of a SIPP?

A SIPP gives you a lot of control over where and how your money is invested, which could be ideal if you’re a confident investor (although some people get a financial adviser to help them). SIPPs also usually offer a broader range of investment options than other plans.

Just like other personal pensions (for example, our own Personal Pension), a SIPP can give you a lot of flexibility. You can usually start, stop or change what you’re paying in at any time. And as with other personal pensions, you get the following tax benefits:  

• You can get tax relief*, which helps boost what you pay in. 
• You don’t need to pay capital gains tax on investment growth.
• You can usually take 25% of your plan tax free.

*Pension providers only add tax relief to your plan at a rate of 20%. So if you pay tax at a higher rate than this, you need to claim some tax back from the government yourself. Find out more about this, and when you might get tax benefits in a different way, on MoneyHelper. You can also read MoneyHelper’s guide about the ‘annual allowance’, which might limit how much tax relief you get.

What can a SIPP invest in?

One of the main benefits of a SIPP is the wide range of investment options available to you. These might include pension funds, mutual funds, commercial property, gold bullion and lots more.

It depends on who your SIPP provider is and what they offer.

Can you transfer a pension to a SIPP?

Yes. These days, it’s common to have more than one pension plan. So to help keep track, you could consider bringing your plans together into a SIPP or another pension plan.  

Some plans come with benefits and guarantees that you could lose by transferring, so do check first. If you’re unsure about transferring, it could be worth getting advice from a financial adviser. You can visit MoneyHelper to find out more about getting financial advice.

SIPP v personal pension

SIPPs and personal pension plans both give you a way of investing for later life, and they’re very similar to each other.

The biggest difference is a SIPP offers a far wider range of investment options, which might be particularly suitable for experienced investors or for someone taking investment advice from an adviser. But most personal pension plans offer a suitable range of investments for the average person looking to save for retirement.

How to set up a SIPP

To set up a SIPP, you could start by looking online for SIPP providers. You may be able to apply for your SIPP online, or you could get in contact with the provider.

Find out more about Standard Life’s SIPP on our website.

Want something simpler?

SIPPs aren’t your only option; there are other personal pensions you could explore. 

If you want choice and flexibility like a SIPP, but in a simpler low-cost option, our Personal Pension could be right for you instead – you can set it up from as little as £1. You can choose from over 50 investments options. Or you can pick our ready-made option, if you want an easy option designed and managed by experts.
 

Our Personal Pension

 

The information here is based on our understanding in December 2025 and shouldn’t be taken as financial advice.

A pension is an investment, the value can go down as well as up, and you could get back less than was paid in.

Your own personal circumstances, including where you live in the UK, will have an impact on the tax you pay. Laws and tax rules may change in the future.