HMRC's QROPS list is a GOV.UK page of overseas schemes that told HMRC they qualify, refreshed on the 1st and 15th of each month.
Appearing on it is the start of a check, not the end of one. Holding a scheme name someone has given you? The form on this page wants only a phone number and a few basics; an FCA-authorised adviser then calls, at no charge, about what a listing can and cannot tell you.
Where is the HMRC QROPS list, and how often is it updated?
It is on GOV.UK under a slightly different name: HMRC's page headed Check the recognised overseas pension schemes notification list. The name matters. Every QROPS must first be a recognised overseas pension scheme (ROPS), and the list is of schemes that have told HMRC they meet the ROPS conditions and asked to be shown. How the two labels relate is explained on QROPS vs ROPS.
GOV.UK says an updated list is published on the 1st and 15th day of each month, moving to the next working day when that date falls on a weekend or UK public holiday. The page was last updated on 15 October 2026, when 25 names went on, 17 came off and one was amended. The list moves constantly, so a copy saved months ago, or a screenshot sent by a seller, tells you little about today.
HMRC adds a warning about timing. Sometimes the list is updated at short notice to remove schemes temporarily while reviews are carried out, for example where fraudulent activity is suspected. A scheme can therefore disappear between the 1st and the 15th.
How to read an entry on the list
The list is one long page. Countries are grouped in alphabetical bands (A to C, D to F and so on) and each country has its own table with two columns, headed "ROPS" and "Country". An entry is just the scheme's name beside its country. There is no address, contact detail or reference number to match against, so the name you search for needs to be the name the scheme itself uses.
Country tables vary a great deal. Some hold a handful of names; the Australia table is far longer and includes individually named self-managed super funds. A long list says nothing about quality, only about how many schemes in that country notified HMRC.
Where the latest update touched a country, an extra table follows it headed "Changes made for" that country and the date, marking each scheme as added, removed or amended. In the 15 October 2026 update, such tables appear for Australia, Ireland, the Isle of Man, Jersey and the Netherlands. A scheme marked removed there has dropped out of the main table.
Above each country table sits a version of the same sentence, and it is the one to take seriously: "We cannot guarantee these are ROPS or that any transfers to them will be free of UK tax."
What being on HMRC's QROPS list does not mean
HMRC's Pensions Tax Manual sets out what a listing records, and it is narrower than most people assume. The manager has notified HMRC, wants the scheme to appear, and has undertaken to provide information. That is all it shows. It does not show that the scheme actually meets the ROPS requirements. Those are a matter of fact, they can shift once notification has been made, and they have to be confirmed before any money moves.
- Not an endorsement. The manual says the published list is not to be taken as a recommendation for a particular entity or product.
- Not verification. Inclusion should not be seen as HMRC confirming that it has verified everything the scheme supplied in its notification.
- Not a guarantee on tax. The manual says a listing does not guarantee that a transfer will be free of UK tax. Separately, the charge on some transfers depends on your own circumstances; see HMRC's QROPS rules.
- Not permanent. HMRC says a name is removed promptly once it knows the entity has ceased to be a ROPS or never met the conditions, and may be removed while HMRC carries out further checks if it has concerns.
The stakes are not small. If a scheme is on the list but should not have been, the manual says money sent to it could attract an unauthorised payments charge of 40 per cent, possibly with an additional 15 per cent surcharge, for the member. GOV.UK's transfer guidance is blunter: send money to a scheme that is not a QROPS and your own provider may decline to pay it, or you will owe tax of at least 40% on the amount. The list page itself adds that HMRC will usually go after the tax, plus interest for late payment, on transfers to overseas entities that fail the ROPS tests even when they are listed, and will charge penalties in appropriate cases.
Which test decides is the one the list cannot answer. Which documents should back up a listed scheme's claim? An adviser can explain, free, once a phone number is in the short form here.
Is the list a list of QROPS providers to choose from?
No. People searching for a list of QROPS providers often expect a shop window, but the page is a register of names that have notified HMRC. It does not rank, compare or describe schemes, and it does not say who accepts UK transfers or on what terms.
The manual describes who the list is for: scheme administrators of registered pension schemes and overseas scheme managers, to verify as one part of their due diligence that an entity has notified HMRC. The manual's cautions are addressed to administrators and members alike, and it treats the list as a single check among several. Which countries tend to have schemes, and what to weigh when choosing one, is covered in which countries have QROPS, and whether the idea suits you at all in is a QROPS a good idea.
What to do if a scheme is not on the list
Not being listed does not by itself settle anything, either way. The manual says not every entity that has notified HMRC will have chosen to be on the published list, and a scheme manager may ask for a scheme to be removed even though it remains a QROPS. So the absence of a name can mean no notification, a choice not to appear, a temporary suspension, or a scheme that has lost its status.
The consequences differ. Where a manager simply asked for the scheme to come off the list, the manual says transfers before and after that removal may be recognised transfers. It says transfers made before a scheme ceased to be a ROPS, or was excluded, should be recognised transfers, while transfers after that date will be unauthorised payments. If HMRC finds the original notification was incorrect, none of the transfers will count, because the scheme was never a QROPS.
Practical steps follow from that:
- Ask the scheme directly whether it has notified HMRC, and whether it chose to be shown on the list or asked to come off it. The responsibility sits with you: GOV.UK names the overseas scheme, your UK provider and an adviser as the places to ask.
- Ask your UK provider what it requires before it will release the transfer. It is the one making the payment, and under the manual a scheme administrator who transfers to a non-QROPS faces a charge of its own.
- Do not expect HMRC to explain. The manual says that, because of confidentiality rules, HMRC cannot say why a particular entity is no longer included, or answer queries about an overseas entity, unless the scheme manager has given signed written authorisation naming the person to be told.
If the scheme cannot show you a position you are comfortable with, that is a reason to stop and take advice, not to proceed on trust. Whether an unlisted scheme's own papers back up the status it claims can be explained to you free by an adviser, once your number is in the enquiry form.
Pressure to move quickly, or a seller who treats the list as proof, are the sort of thing the pension scams page and the FCA's pension scams guidance cover.
Questions people ask about the HMRC list
Is there an HMRC-approved list of QROPS?
Not approved. The page is a notification list: it records what schemes have told HMRC, and the manual says it is not a recommendation. HMRC's own heading for the page says as much: it asks you to check the recognised overseas pension schemes notification list.
How close to the transfer should I check the list?
The manual says checking the list no more than one day before the transfer will confirm whether the scheme has notified HMRC. It adds that this will not confirm the scheme meets the ROPS requirements. Your UK scheme administrator will have its own process, and the timing is worth raising with it.
Is a QROPS a registered pension scheme?
No. GOV.UK says a ROPS must be based outside the UK and cannot be a registered pension scheme, and the manual says every QROPS must first be a ROPS. A QROPS therefore sits outside the UK registered-scheme system, which is why a transfer to one needs these checks.
Does a listing mean the transfer will be free of UK tax?
No. The list's own sentence says HMRC cannot guarantee it, and even a genuine QROPS can attract the 25% overseas transfer charge in some cases. The tests and exclusions are on HMRC's QROPS rules.
Can I find out why a scheme was taken off the list?
Not from HMRC unless the scheme's manager authorises it in writing. The reasons the manual gives include a voluntary removal, a loss of status, a temporary suspension during a review and a mistaken original notification. Ask the scheme itself.
Who is the list for, and where does it sit in the process?
It supports due diligence by scheme administrators and overseas managers, as one part of the checks. The paperwork for an actual transfer is on the QROPS form and process, and the basics of what a QROPS is are on what is a QROPS.
Using the list without leaning on it
The list is a useful first filter: a scheme that cannot be found on it, or that has been removed, needs a clear explanation before anything moves. A scheme that is on it still has to meet the conditions, and the UK tax result depends on your own circumstances, including where you live. Because UK tax is only one side of an overseas move, the country where you live or plan to live may have its own rules, and advice there may be needed too. One specific overseas scheme in mind? Use the quick form on this page to say so, and that scheme's paperwork can be weighed against your plans, free, by an FCA-authorised adviser on a return call. For the wider picture, see getting advice on a QROPS, how to transfer a pension and QROPS vs an international SIPP. If your pension is a final salary one, finding a transfer specialist comes first.