If you hold an offshore investment bond provided by a Dublin-based insurer, there’s a good chance the protection behind it changed without you noticing. When the UK left the EU, providers based in Ireland were allowed to keep serving existing UK customers under a transitional arrangement called the Temporary Permissions Regime. That regime ended on 30 December 2023, and with it went a protection most bondholders had never had reason to think about.
What actually changed
From 31 December 2023, Dublin-based offshore bond providers no longer fall under the Financial Services Compensation Scheme. In practical terms, that means if your provider became insolvent, the FSCS safety net that would normally step in simply doesn’t apply – and Ireland doesn’t currently offer an equivalent compensation scheme to fill that gap. Complaints have moved too: rather than the UK’s Financial Ombudsman Service, unresolved disputes now go through the Financial Services and Pensions Ombudsman of Ireland instead.
What hasn’t changed
The bond itself carries on as normal. Its tax treatment is unaffected, it continues to grow (or not) exactly as it did before, and your provider hasn’t stopped being able to service it – firms in this position can continue running existing contracts under a separate arrangement called the Financial Services Contracts Regime, which allows insurance-based contracts like these to keep being serviced for up to 15 years without being able to write any new UK business. So there’s no need to do anything urgently, or to assume your bond provider is about to disappear. What’s changed is specifically what happens in the unlikely event that it does.
Why this is easy to miss
Offshore bonds are often set up as part of a long-term plan and then left largely untouched for years, which is exactly why a change like this can slip past someone who took out their bond well before 2023 and hasn’t had reason to revisit the paperwork since. If you’re not sure whether your own bond is Dublin-based, it’s worth checking directly with your provider or adviser, since not every offshore bond provider is affected in the same way – some operate from jurisdictions, such as the Isle of Man, that retain their own compensation arrangements and full UK investor protection regardless of this change.
What’s worth doing about it
This isn’t a reason to panic or to assume your bond needs replacing. It is a reason to know where you actually stand, particularly if the bond represents a meaningful part of your wealth, and to factor the change into any wider review of where your money is held and how it’s protected. For some people, the answer will simply be to note it and carry on. For others, particularly where protection matters more given the size of the holding, it may be worth discussing whether an alternative structure makes more sense going forward.
Let’s check where you stand
We work with clients across Poole, Bournemouth and the wider Dorset area to review exactly this kind of detail as part of an ongoing financial plan, rather than letting it go unnoticed for years. If you hold an offshore bond and aren’t sure how this affects you, get in touch and we’re happy to have a no-obligation conversation.
This article is for general information only and does not constitute financial advice, which should be based on your individual circumstances. The information is aimed at retail clients only. All information is correct at the time of writing (September 2026) and is subject to change in the future.
The value of your investments (and any income from them) can go down as well as up and you may not get back the full amount invested. Tax treatment depends on individual circumstances and may change in the future.