Expat rates: Boosting pension power by beating fluctuations Given this, it makes sense for expat pensioners to get the best possible deal on their savings. Several of the variable and fixed-rate accounts on offer to expats can pay interest regularly rather than annually, so boosting savers' income. For example, all Nationwide International's sterling denominated accounts offer a monthly income option as does Skipton International on its three International Investor accounts. The Nationwide's Bonus Access Issue 6 account pays 1.4pc monthly interest for balances of £25,000 or above, and the Bonus 95 - which demands 95 days' notice for withdrawal or closure - pays 1.6pc on the same sized balance for monthly interest. As well as annual or monthly interest, some providers offer a third option useful to expats: on-closure interest. With these, no interest is paid until the account is closed down. This makes tax planning easier for expats who might be moving to countries with lower tax rates than their current home or who expect the amount of tax they will pay to fall in the future - say, when they retire. By deferring when they take the interest, expats could pay less tax on their savings' interest. Nationwide International offers interest on closure on its accounts, but few others do. There's just been a bit of fiddling with variable interest rate accounts, with two providers cutting rates - but also offering better deals to those with smaller amounts to deposit. Santander's Isle of Man branch has made alterations to its account range to bring them more into line with those offered to mainland savers with the bank. Santander's Isle of Man branch was formerly Alliance & Leicester International but is now operated simply as the island's branch of the bank. Rates remain the same on the fixed-rate bonds but the minimum investment has fallen from £5,000 to just £500. Currently, Santander is offering 1.4pc fixed for one year or 2pc fixed for two (2.05pc for balances over £200,000). The two-year rate is only just beaten by Permanent Bank International's 2.08pc. The one year rate is trumped by Permanent at 1.85pc and Nationwide at 1.7pc. However the Permanent rates are on a minimum £20,000 and Nationwide £50,000 compared with Santander's £500. In addition, Santander's variable-rate eSaver account has gone. It is replaced by a Branch Saver account paying the same rate of 1pc - but if you make a withdrawal then in that month, the rate falls to 0.1pc. After a year the account reverts to an Everyday Saver IOM account paying 0.5pc. Britannia International, the offshore brand of the Co-operative Bank, has cut rates on its variable accounts by up to 0.5 of a point. It has also removed tiers on its Access Plus and 60 Day Notice accounts. However, Access Plus - which now pays 1.25pc for balances of £1,000 or more - is still one of the best paying variable accounts, coming just below the top-paying account from Nationwide International which pays 1.5pc: the rate previously paid by Britannia.