The main points in a nutshell

  • Get the most out of the AHV: if you did not have any income subject to AHV contributions in a calendar year, pay the outstanding contributions within five years.
  • Please note: the higher your income, the bigger the potential pension gap in pillar 2.
  • Pillar 3a helps make your retirement more comfortable.

1. Contribution years

In the ideal scenario, you will have a total of 44 years of contributions towards your AHV pension. But maybe you want to spend a year or two abroad or just take some time off. For every year that you don’t pay in, your AHV pension will be reduced by 1/44. You should avoid gaps in the deposits.

2. Salary

It sounds crazy, but it’s true: the higher your income, the lower the amount that’s covered by pillar 2. An annual income of up to CHF 88,200 is relatively well protected in Switzerland. However, if your salary exceeds this amount it is up to your employer to decide whether this part of the salary is insured in a non-mandatory scheme. This can also lead to a pension gap. A good solution is to start saving privately with pillar 3a as soon as you can.

The chart shows a pension gap of 35% based on an annual gross salary of CHF 82,000.

The chart shows a pension gap of 35% based on an annual gross salary of CHF 82,000.

3. Private pension scheme

The private pension scheme, or pillar 3, significantly impacts your ability to live comfortably in old age, in particular pillar 3a. It is worth starting early, because if you are only insured under pillar 1 and 2 to the extent required by law, you usually get about 60 percent of your final salary per month after retirement. You will therefore only have just over half the money that you are used to. This is quite a large difference.

And in old age you want to be able to enjoy yourself: finally you have time for yourself, for the trip of a lifetime or a new hobby. This all costs money. It therefore makes sense to gradually close this gap. You can use our retirement calculator to calculate how much you should pay into pillar 3a or another instrument such as a fund account to cover your pension gap. Another benefit is that you can deduct the amount you pay into the third pillar each year from your taxable income and thus save on taxes.

A head start for your future

Start saving for retirement today: save on taxes, benefit in the long term and pay in whenever you want.

4. Inflation

If inflation rises faster than pensions, in the future you will get less for the same money than you do today. The good news: in pillar 1, your pension is automatically adjusted for inflation. But: in the occupational pension scheme, i.e., pillar 2, this is not enshrined in law.

Sounds complicated? It’s not: our pension check will show you whether you have sufficient money in the pot or whether there is still potential for optimization. Since this is a somewhat more detailed and individual matter, you can make an appointment with us if necessary and, together, we will look at how you can make optimal provisions for later.

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