Leaving

When your employment with an affiliated company of the Pension Fund Swiss Re comes to an end, your membership of the Pension Fund also ends. This means that leaving benefits (also called vested benefits) will become payable, if you are not yet 58. Your leaving benefits are the amount of the retirement savings capital accumulated by the time you leave.

Your leaving benefits comprise:

  • The retirement savings capital from the Pension Plan
  • The savings capital available in the ER account and
  • The savings capital in the Capital Plan or the value of the fund units, whichever is higher.

The vested benefit can be applied as follows:

  • transferred to the new employer's pension fund;
  • transferred to a vested benefits foundation at a bank;
  • transferred to an insurer under a vested benefits policy.

An insured can request cash payment of the leaving benefit if

  • the insured is permanently leaving Switzerland (subject to international regulations);
  • the insured becomes self-employed as their main employment and is no longer subject to the requirement to be a member of an occupational pension plan;
  • the leaving benefit amounts to less than one annual contribution by the insured person.

If, despite sending a reminder letter, the Pension Fund Swiss Re does not receive information on the transfer of vested benefits, the leaving benefit will automatically be transferred to the FSOPP Substitute Occupational Benefit Institution (www.aeis.ch) after a period of six months.

If you dissolve your employment after the age of 58, but before age 65, then you have the following two options:

a) Early retirement

  • You receive a retirement pension for life.
  • You can request to have your retirement savings capital paid out. This will be paid as a once-off lump sum to a bank account in your name.
  • You can also choose any mix of retirement and lump-sum benefits.

Information sheet Pension or lump sum at retirement

b) Leaving the Pension Fund

  • You can request to have your vested benefits transferred to your new pension fund or to a vested benefits account with a bank. 

Insured’s aged 58 and above who are leaving the Pension Fund must enter on their “leaving form", whether they wish to draw a retirement pension or whether they want to have their leaving benefits paid out as a lump sum in accordance with the following points. Insureds can have their leaving benefits transferred after age 58 only if they move to a new employer and therefore to a new pension fund or if they have applied for unemployment insurance benefits. 

Information sheet Leaving Swiss Re

c) Continued insurance in the Pension Plan upon termination of employment contract by the employer after 55

Information sheet Continued insurance upon termination of employment