Invested Pillar 3a and Vested Benefits Account for Swiss Abroad?

Banks, Insurances & Third Pillar
1

Hi everyone,

I’m planning on moving to Sweden and I’m trying to figure out what to do with my pillar 2 and pillar 3a.

I’m 32 and I don’t have a huge amount in them, about 50k in my Pillar 2 (30% of that are the super-mandatory portion), and I have about 25k in my Pillar 3a with VIAC (though I will likely add another 7k this year).

I understand that when I leave to go to an EU country I can withdraw my Pillar 3a as well as the super-mandatory portion of my Pillar 2. Theoretically I would like to do that so I can invest that myself, but I found out that if I withdraw them while I live in Sweden, I would most likely end up paying a staggering 52% tax since both the Pillar 2 and 3a get taxed as income, and due to my salary the amount would be taxed at the higher rate.

Since I don’t know if I’ll stay in Sweden for a year or a decade I thought it might make more sense to just leave the money in Switzerland. However, I read on the VIAC website that they require anyone who leaves Switzerland to close their account. So I thought I’d look for a different provider who would let me keep my 3a if I go abroad. However, most providers (e.g. finpension, Truewealth, Yuh) seem to say that you have to close it.

I looked into BCGE since they seem to be friendly to Swiss abroad, and a customer service advisor told me that they should allow me to keep a 3a account, but at 0.15% interest per year that is not appealing at all.

Similarly, I have not yet found a Vested Benefits account (Freizügigkeitsdepot) that would allow me to keep my money in Switzerland but invested rather than just sat in an account doing basically nothing.

Does anyone know of a bank that allows Swiss citizens with a foreign residence to keep their Pillar 3a and 2 money in Switzerland but in an invested way? Surely I can’t be the only person with this problem and wish.

2

Can you link to the conditions that you can’t keep a vested benefits or a 3a with finpension/viac when domiciled abroad?

(from cursory glance I couldn’t find any such conditions, viac even mentions you can use a foreign mobile number)

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3

Huh, thank you for making me double-check that… I could have sworn that I read that in the VIAC FAQ, but now I can’t find it anymore. Looks like they may indeed accept people who live abroad. Then that would also solve my Pillar 2 problem, I’d just take the vested benefits account with them. I’ll try to call them tomorrow to double-check, I’ve been very happy with VIAC and would like to stay with them.

Source for Finpension: It is currently not possible for you to continue using the finpension investment solution if you move abroad. However, we are working intensively on a solution so that you do not have to liquidate your securities when you move abroad.

Source for Truewealth: When you leave Switzerland, you must have your Pillar 3a account with True Wealth paid out in accordance with the provisions currently in force or transfer it to another pension foundation.

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That’s weird… I read the FAQ again and found this in the FAQ section for the Vested Benefits account (under “Open customer relationship”), but it’s talking about VIAC Invest:

Can I open or continue VIAC Invest with domicile abroad?

No. The VIAC Invest product is only available to customers domiciled in Switzerland. If you, as an existing VIAC Invest customer, move your domicile abroad, you are obliged to inform us of the change of address and close your VIAC Invest. There are no closing fees.

Maybe they just forgot to change it from Invest to Vested Benefits? I guess I really have to contact them to find out.

5

Actually, I don’t need to call, finally found it indirectly inside the VIAC Invest FAQ…

Who can use VIAC Invest?

In principle, any person of legal age domiciled in Switzerland can open VIAC Invest. As soon as you, as a VIAC user, move your domicile abroad, you must inform us of this. In this case, the VIAC Invest product would have to be closed and withdrawn. VIAC Pillar 3a and vested benefits, on the other hand, can also be continued with domicile abroad (exception: domicile USA).

Great news.

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6

That’s for “invest” though. VB and Pillar 3a are different products.

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7

Ah I see… Thanks for clarifying.

8

To my knowledge, there is no foundation that requires the closure of pillar 2 or pillar 3a solutions when you move abroad.

What’s more, the extra fees for non-residents that banks charge for normal bank accounts generally do not apply to vested benefits or pillar 3a accounts (which makes sense because these accounts technically belong to the Swiss foundation that holds your assets in trust).

What can be problematic is opening a new pillar 2 or 3a account after you leave Switzerland (to transfer existing assets from another Swiss foundation, for example. Many foundations do accept new customers already domiciled abroad, but some do not. For that reason, it can be beneficial to find a good solution before you leave, as you may have fewer options after leaving.

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