Hi everyone,
I am quite interested in the topic of retirement at the moment as I have no idea how much money I have in the 1st/2nd pillar. Is there any way to know that?
I’ve been working since 23 yo, and now I have 31. Changed jobs three times and I can tell that when changing from the first one to the second position I did not know that I have to move the money from one to another. So, could I check somewhere that the money from my first job is still around anywhere?
Thanks in advance!
1st pillar is AHV which will depend on the last salary before your retirement, there are tables that can be looked up to find out how much you will get.
2nd pillar is your pension fund money which indeed should be moved from the first pension fund to the second one. Usually the new pension fund sends you a letter about transferring your assets. You also receive a yearly pension fund statement (see https://www.axa.ch/servlets/external/docstoredocument?accesscode=adp6a for an example and guide on how to read it).
This service helps you to find your pension fund money incase you’ve ignored all mails and pension fund statements in your past: Enquiry about occupational benefit credit balances | LOB Guarantee Fund
I believe it depends on the number of years you’ve paid into AHV and the average salary you have while paying into AHV. (German) details: Höhe der AHV - so hoch wird Ihre AHV-Rente ausfallen (vermoegens-partner.ch)
Thank you for all that information!
For 1st pillar, you can use this link: Schweiz | Bestellung Kontoauszug | Merkblätter & Formulare | Informationsstelle AHV/IV
Didn’t try it yet, I intend to do it beginning of next year.
Nope. AHV pension primarily depends on your average gros salary from age 20 to 64, so for 44 years. A list with your registered past salaries can be requested from the authorities.
This is correct. However, only years in which you are registered with the OASI and pay contributions count towards your OASI pension. If you are registered with the OASI for the full 44 years then the lowest pension you can get is 1225 francs per month, and the highest pension you can get is 2450 francs per month. How much you get depends on your average income across those 44 years. Most people get a pension which falls somewhere between the minimum and maximum.
If you do not contribute to the OASI for the full 44 years (e.g. you only live in Switzerland for a few years, or move here later in life), then your pension is reduced accordingly.
Example: If you only contribute for 11 years, then your pension will be around 1/4 of what it would be if you had contributed for the full 44 years. So around 306.25 per mont if you paid minimum contributions, and around 612.5 francs per month if you paid maximum contributions.
You can get an OASI statement from your social security office (generally the cantonal social security office, unless your employer subscribes to a social security office from an industry association). In Zurich, this would be the SVA:
https://svazurich.ch/
The problem is that the statement provides a calculation of what your pension will be IF you continue contributing until you reach retirement age. So you do not really get a clear picture of where you stand right now.
Of course, the OASI can also be changed (higher retirement age or lower pensions, for example). But your OASI statement is as good as it gets, in terms of determining your OASI pension.
Occupational pension fund (pillar 2)
Your occupational pension (pillar 2) is something else. The pension your receive from your employer’s pension fund is more like a bank account. You have a clear amount of money in the account, and money paid in by you and your employer are credited to the account. The pension you receive is based on a percentage of the benefits in your account. Currently, your annual pension is equal to 6.8 percent of the benefits in your pension fund (though the conversion rate is set to be reduced to 6 percent shortly).
Example: If you have 100,000 francs in your pillar 2 when you reach standard retirement age, you will receive 6800 francs per year (or 6000 francs if the conversion rate is lowered to 6 percent).
Of course, if you only work for a Swiss employer for a few years, you could also have 5, 10, or 20,000 francs in your pension fund. If you only have 10K of benefits, for example, then your pension will be just 680 or 600 francs per year.
Keep in mind that this legal minimum conversion rate only applies to mandatory („BVG“/„LPP“) benefits. Pension funds can pay much lower conversion rates on non-mandatory benefits. The actual rate overall conversion rate depends on the pension fund‘s plan, terms and conditions.
I guess I should select the one of my canton, right?
„The cantonal compensation offices are the point of contact for people resident in the canton not linked to any professional fund association or the federal compensation office“
Cantonal compensation offices | Contacts | Information Center OASI/DI
State pension reminds me of trying to jump on a moving train. The movement caused by inflation. For example extrapolated for the year 2036 and based on the last three decades the maximum AHV pension might be as high as CHF 2700 per month. But this also means that the required average yearly salary will be close to CHF 100’000. 4.4 million in total.
This can be partially compensated if some of the early registered salaries are upvalued by a factor as was last done for the 80’s. But I don’t expect that this approach will fully negate the effects of inflation for calculating your final state pension.
What I find a terrible idea is the 72% cap limitation if you are married… it’s a real disadvantage of vetting married for AHV.
Too bad my wife won’t hear about divorce to increase our monthly income of 1300 chf…
Swiss social security severely discriminates against married couples on most fronts. The AHV isn’t even the half of it.
Imagine, for example, that an unmarried partner with a low income could claim welfare, AHV or IV supplemental benefits, benefits towards the cost of a care home, etc. etc. even if their partner is stinking rich.
The same partner, but married, wouldn’t get a penny.
Then there is debt. An unmarried partner bears no liability for their partner’s debts. So basically, one partner can take out a huge amount of debt and then declare personal bankruptcy, without it having any impact on their partner’s wealth or creditworthiness. No need to say that the potential for abuse is enormous.
If the couple were married, the obligation of mutual support would mean their partner would be largely responsible for their debts.
And the list goes on. But of course, that is partly a different topic for a separate thread.
It goes both ways. Surviving spouses can get widow(er) pensions from AHV/AVS that unmarried partners can‘t.
You marry - you subscribe to shared finances, an obligation of mutual support and forming a (as Germany so aptly calls it, while I struggle to find an appropriate English translation) „Bedarfsgemeinschaft“. And enjoy advantages in case your spouse dies.
You don‘t marry - you don’t.
AFAIK the same principle applies to 2nd pillar. The “Witwenrente” is to my knowledge only applicable for married couples (which have been married at least for 5 years).
That’s changing.
Some large CH companies allow registration of non-married partners as beneficiaries of 2nd pillar.
From a purely financial perspective, the best option is to marry for 10 years and then divorce after the age of 45. In that case, you remain entitled to the same insurance/pensions as if you were married, but you lose the obligation of mutual support.