How to set up a SIPP with InvestEngine (Self-Invested Personal Pension)
Mark Tovey is a finance journalist with bylines in The Guardian, The Motley Fool, and more. He digs into data and FOI-based investigations, and makes finance easier to understand.
Last updated 25th February 2026
6 min read
- Sign up to InvestEngine
- Open a SIPP or pension account
- Verify your identity
- Build your portfolio (unless using a managed account)
- Fund your account or set up a recurring deposit
- Select whether you want funds to automatically be invested or not
- The government’s 20% bonus will automatically be added to your account – this can take a few weeks.
Below, you'll find a full step-by-step process for opening and setting up a SIPP with InvestEngine. You'll see what buttons to press, what details to enter, how to select your investments, and more.
Expect this to take about 10 to 15 minutes. You won't need any financial wizardry, just a few basic details.
Financial Interest provides guidance, not advice. If you’re unsure about anything, speak with a qualified adviser. When investing, your capital is always at risk. Past performance does not guarantee future results.
What you'll need
Before you begin, make sure you have:
- Your National Insurance number
- A UK bank account with debit card details
- An idea of how much you want to pay in, either as a one-off or on a recurring basis
- A decision on how hands-on you want to be (DIY or Retirement portfolio).
Step 1: Open a SIPP
To do this, we'll use InvestEngine. You can use any SIPP provider you wish – the process should be quite similar, though will vary in places.
Log into your InvestEngine account
Go to InvestEngine and sign in with your email and password. If you haven't registered yet, it takes about 60 seconds to create an account. No documents are required at this stage.
Click 'Open a Self-Invested Personal Pension'
From the main dashboard, scroll down to the Personal Pension heading. Click 'Open a Self-Invested Personal Pension'.
Agree to the terms
You'll see a purple box explaining the benefits of a SIPP. Click 'Continue', then review and accept the SIPP terms and conditions (if you're happy with them).
Enter your personal details
You'll be asked for your full name, date of birth, phone number, UK postcode, time spent at your current address, citizenship and tax residency, and National Insurance number.
Link a bank account
You'll nominate a UK bank account for top-ups and withdrawals. Make sure the account is in your name.
Answer a few financial questions
To meet anti-money laundering rules, InvestEngine asks for your employment status and the source of funds (e.g. salary, savings).
Once that's done, you'll return to your dashboard with the SIPP shell in place. It's officially open, though still empty.
Step 2: Choose how to invest
InvestEngine specialises in Exchange-Traded Funds (ETFs) and offers different approaches depending on how hands-on you want to be.
There are four ways to invest inside your SIPP:
- Do it yourself - Pick and choose ETFs yourself if you fancy calling the shots, all commission-free.
- LifePlan portfolios - Globally diversified portfolios created by experts with different risk ratings according to equity exposure.
- Managed for you - Temporarily unavailable while InvestEngine updates its portfolio-building questionnaire. Existing portfolios remain unaffected.
- Retirement portfolio - A managed option that automatically adjusts your portfolio based on your age.
If you're unsure which approach to take, consult a financial adviser. They can help align your investment choices with your financial goals and risk tolerance.
Step 3: Building a portfolio
If you want to have full control over your own investments, the Do-it-yourself option lets you pick your own ETFs instead of using a pre-set mix, or having someone else manage your portfolio.
To create a DIY portfolio:
Go to 'My Dashboard'
You'll find this option in the main menu.
Click 'Create Personal Pension Portfolio'
You'll find this under the 'Personal Pension' section.
Select 'Do it yourself'
When the account types pop up, select 'Do it yourself'. Please note: this is not a recommendation – we're only showing this as a tutorial for those that want to create and manage their own investment portfolio.
Browse investments
Use the search bar to find the investment you want, or browse through the full range using InvestEngine's filters. Click 'Add to portfolio' on any asset you want to invest in.
Once you've finished selecting investments, click 'Continue'.
Adjust the weights
Use the plus and minus buttons next to the percentages shown, or delete and type new weights into each box.
Your weights will need to add up to exactly 100% overall and you won't be able to proceed until this is the case.
Click 'Review and continue'
Double-check that you're happy with your portfolio – considering your exposure to different regions, industries, and individual companies.
If you're happy with everything, click 'Save and continue'.
P.S, SIPPs are great for building retirement funds, but the first step is figuring out how much you should actually be saving. Enter your email below and we'll send you over our free calculator, lickety-split.
Click 'Make your 1st top up'
Now you're able to fund your portfolio. Click 'Make your 1st top up' to deposit a lump sum (minimum £100), or to set up a recurring investment (minimum £50 monthly or £20 weekly).
If you're unsure about anything, speak with a qualified financial adviser.
If you'd like to learn more about ETFs, check out our free course hosted by Damien Talks Money: Index Funds for Beginners.
Government contributions and tax relief
One of the key benefits of a SIPP is tax relief on contributions. For every £80 you contribute, the government adds £20, effectively boosting your total contribution to £100.
If you're a higher-rate taxpayer, you can claim additional relief through your tax return, reducing the cost of saving even further.
You can contribute up to £60,000 a year tax-free, with no lifetime limit on how much you can save in your pension. This annual limit includes the 20% government's contribution.
You can start withdrawing from these accounts from age 55 (rising to 57 in 2028). Up to 25% of your pension pot can be taken tax-free, with the rest taxed as income.
Pension rules are subject to change.
How do I get the 20% top up?
InvestEngine automatically adds 20% basic rate tax relief to your SIPP contributions. This means for every £8,000 you contribute, HMRC adds £2,000, bringing it up to £10,000. You don't need to do anything – InvestEngine claims this on your behalf.
This amount will be added to your account, but you'll need 'AutoInvest' turned on if you want this to automatically be invested (when using a DIY portfolio).
If you're a higher-rate (40%) or additional-rate (45%) taxpayer, you can get more tax relief, but you have to claim the extra yourself.
For example, as a 40% taxpayer, you're entitled to 40% tax relief in total. On a £10,000 contribution, that means £4,000 in tax relief. Since InvestEngine has already added £2,000, you can claim back the remaining £2,000 from HMRC. If you're taxed at 45%, you can claim back £2,500 instead.
You can do this by filing a self-assessment tax return or, if you're employed, by contacting HMRC to adjust your tax code, so you pay less tax through PAYE.
Financial Interest provides guidance, not advice. If you’re unsure about anything, speak with a qualified adviser. When investing, your capital is always at risk. Past performance does not guarantee future results.
