There are lots of small puzzle pieces on retirement I am starting to think about. I read several posts here related to withdrawal of 2nd/3rd pillars but still the “orchestration” of the many steps is somewhat unclear.
Let’s say I plan on retiring at 60 years in a country outside EU/EFTA without income taxes (meaning I will fully leave Switzerland) and I am trying to find out what would be the best process (mainly regarding the 2nd pillar). I plan on cashing out the whole 2nd pillar.
The first option is to just announce to my company/Pensionskasse that I quit my job. My 2nd pillar will then be transferred to a vested benefits account in Schwyz for instance. Then I leave Switzerland. Later I can cash out to a Swiss bank account (paying the Schwyz taxes).
As an alternative I could announce to my company/Pensionskasse that I “retire early”. Probably at that stage I have to tell them what my plans are for the 2nd pillar withdrawal. I want to cash out all so the Bern taxes on capital withdrawal apply. Not sure, but I might have an option to remain somehow in the Pensionskasse until regular 65 (getting a Rente then at 65)!? Not something I initially thought of but is somehow an additional option.
→ Do these options make sense to you? Option #1 seems cheaper!?
Yes, both options are possible. I guess that for #1, you need to find the local regulations of your new country of residence and see how they will tax that money.
For #2, you cannot stay in the pension fund if you don’t work (well, unless you get fired, and even then, the conditions are not great)
As you correctly said quitting my job won’t work. I would need to get fired after 58 in order to remain in the pension fund (and get the Rente). Anyway that’s not my plan.
If I tell the pension fund that I am leaving Switzerland and want to cash out, the pension fund has to deduct a withholding tax.
Still thinking on how this would work for the AHV. So to get the full AHV rent one needs to contribute 44 years on an average yearly income of 85kCHF.
If today I make 100kCHF, I get deduced 10kCHF (8kCHF for AHV) from my salary. Then the employer also pays 10kCHF on top of that. Schematically. No technically that’s 20kCHF contributions to the AHV.
Now when I retire early I keep paying into the AHV (calculations of contribution then are based on wealth). Now it could be that I will end up paying less AHV than when previously employed) what could affect my “full rent”. Is this correct? To my understanding there is no way to pay more AHV by choice in order to keep the 85kCHF income average needed for a full rent!?
This is not correct. AHV/IV/EO contributions are 10.6% in total, including the employer’s half. I.e., for a CHF 100k gross income, the total AHV/IV/EO contributions are CHF 10’600.
Yes, you are correct. You normally don’t have a choice in that matter. Exceptions are if you’re Swiss but don’t live in Switzerland (the contributions are completely voluntary, although the amount is not) or if you have your own AG/GmbH where you can control to some extent how much to pay as salary and how much to pay as dividend.
Keep in mind that the scale for the AHV pension is far from linear. If your average is close to what you need for the maximum pension, voluntary contributions (if they were possible) might not even provide a net benefit.
E.g., you currently need a CHF 88’200 average for the maximum pension of CHF 2’450. If your average is 10% lower (CHF 79’380), you get a pension of CHF 2’332 a month, only 4.8% lower than the maximum.
3 Likes
By reading and partipating to this forum, you confirm you have read and agree with the disclaimer presented on http://www.mustachianpost.com/
En lisant et participant à ce forum, tu confirmes avoir lu et être d'accord avec l'avis de dégagement de responsabilité présenté sur http://www.mustachianpost.com/fr/
Durch das Lesen und die Teilnahme an diesem Forum bestätigst du, dass du den auf http://www.mustachianpost.com/de/ dargestellten Haftungsausschluss gelesen hast und damit einverstanden bist.