Your retirement options

When you want to take your pension benefits, you have several choices. The right choice for you depends on things like your tax position, whether you have a partner, your attitude to risk and even your health.

Gathering all necessary documentation can take some time, we recommend you start this process well in advance of your retirement date.

You'll have important decisions to make, so we recommend you talk to your financial adviser.

Retirement options
What's right for you?
Ready to make a decision?
More than one pension?

Eligibility and options

If you have a personal pension

You can take your benefits from age 60. Or, if you prefer, you can continue working and adding to your pension fund. You can delay taking your benefits any time up to age 75.

If you're being paid a pension of more than €12,700 each year or have an existing approved minimum retirement fund with a total premium of €63,500

Take a cash lump sum

You can take a cash lump sum of up to 25% of your pension fund (or, if you have a company pension, you can take your cash lump sum based on salary and service instead).

• The first €200,000 will be tax free
• The next €300,000 will be taxed at 20%
• Anything more than €500,000 will be treated as income and taxed under the PAYE system

If you have taken benefits from a pension already, then talk to your financial adviser as the limits that apply to you may differ.

and with the balance

• You can buy a guaranteed pension income for life (an annuity)
• You can invest in an approved retirement fund (ARF)
• You can draw down as taxable cash, or
• You can choose a combination of these options

If you're not being paid a pension, or your pension is less than €12,700 each year

Take a cash lump sum

You can take a cash lump sum of up to 25% of your pension fund (or, if you have a company pension, you can take your cash lump sum based on salary and service instead).

• The first €200,000 will be tax free
• The next €300,000 will be taxed at 20%
• Anything more than €500,000 will be treated as income and taxed under the PAYE system.

If you have taken benefits from a pension already, then talk to your financial adviser as the limits that apply to you may differ.

and with the balance

• You can purchase an annuity
• You can use the first €63,500 to invest in an approved minimum retirement fund (AMRF).You can then invest the rest in an ARF or take it as taxed cash
• You can buy an extra guaranteed pension income to bring your total up to €12,700pa. You can then invest the rest in an ARF or take it as taxed cash

If you've got a small annuity and/or existing AMRF, you can combine premiums to make up the €63,500. If you only have a small annuity, you need to purchase enough annuity to bring the combined guaranteed pension income to €12,700, or invest €63,500 in an AMRF.

If you're seriously ill and need to retire early

If you are seriously ill or disabled and you have to permanently give up work as a result, you may be able to take your benefits before you reach age 60.

To make an ill health early retirement claim, you'll need to provide satisfactory medical evidence. Please ask your GP or attending physician to complete our Ill health questionnaire and for them to return it to our Chief Medical Officer at Standard Life, 90 St Stephen's Green, Dublin 2.

If you have a Personal Retirement Savings Account (PRSA)

You can take your benefits from as early as age 50, assuming you are an employee and retiring from that employment. Otherwise, the earliest is age 60.

Or, if you prefer, you can continue working and adding to your pension fund if you want to delay taking your benefits any time up to age 75.

If you're being paid a pension of more than €12,700 each year or have an existing approved minimum retirement fund with a total premium of €63,500

Take a cash lump sum

You can take a cash lump sum of up to 25% of your pension fund (or, if you have a company pension, you can take your cash lump sum based on salary and service instead).

• The first €200,000 will be tax free
• The next €300,000 will be taxed at 20%
• Anything more than €500,000 will be treated as income and taxed under the PAYE system

If you have taken benefits from a pension already, then talk to your financial adviser as the limits that apply to you may differ.

and with the balance

If you're not being paid a pension, or your pension is less than €12,700 each year

Take a cash lump sum

You can take a cash lump sum of up to 25% of your pension fund (or, if you have a company pension, you can take your cash lump sum based on salary and service instead).

• The first €200,000 will be tax free
• The next €300,000 will be taxed at 20%
• Anything more than €500,000 will be treated as income and taxed under the PAYE system.

If you have taken benefits from a pension already, then talk to your financial adviser as the limits that apply to you may differ.

and with the balance

• You can purchase an annuity
• You can use the first €63,500 to invest in an approved minimum retirement fund (AMRF). You can then invest the rest in an ARF or take it as taxed cash
• You can buy an extra guaranteed pension income to bring your total up to €12,700pa. You can then invest the rest in an ARF or take it as taxed cash

If you're seriously ill and need to retire early

If you are seriously ill or disabled and you have to permanently give up work as a result, you may be able to take your benefits before you reach age 60.

If you have a company pension

You can take your benefits from age 60, or you can take early retirement from age 50 in certain circumstances.

If you prefer, you can continue working and adding to your pension fund. You can delay taking your benefits any time up to age 70.

If you're being paid a pension of more than €12,700 each year or have an existing approved minimum retirement fund with a total premium of €63,500

Take a cash lump sum

You can take a cash lump sum of up to 25% of your pension fund (or, if you have a company pension, you can take your cash lump sum based on salary and service instead).

• The first €200,000 will be tax free
• The next €300,000 will be taxed at 20%
• Anything more than €500,000 will be treated as income and taxed under the PAYE system

If you have taken benefits from a pension already, then talk to your financial adviser as the limits that apply to you may differ.

and with the balance

If you're not being paid a pension, or your pension is less than €12,700 each year

Take a cash lump sum

You can take a cash lump sum of up to 25% of your pension fund (or, if you have a company pension, you can take your cash lump sum based on salary and service instead).

• The first €200,000 will be tax free
• The next €300,000 will be taxed at 20%
• Anything more than €500,000 will be treated as income and taxed under the PAYE system.

If you have taken benefits from a pension already, then talk to your financial adviser as the limits that apply to you may differ.

and with the balance

• You can purchase an annuity
• You can use the first €63,500 to invest in an approved minimum retirement fund (AMRF). You can then invest the rest in an ARF or take it as taxed cash
• You can buy an extra guaranteed pension income to bring your total up to €12,700pa. You can then invest the rest in an ARF or take it as taxed cash

If you're seriously ill and need to retire early

If you are seriously ill or disabled and this is preventing you from working your normal occupation, or it has significantly reduced your earning capacity, you may be able to take your benefits before you reach age 60. In addition, if you are suffering from a terminal illness (where your life expectation is months, rather than years) you may be able to take your pension benefits as a lump sum.

If you're living outside the Republic of Ireland

What's right for you?

Cash lump sum, annuity and/or ARF?

You can take a cash lump sum and with the balance, subject to Revenue rules, you can

• Buy a guaranteed taxable pension income for the rest of your life (an annuity) or
• Invest in an approved retirement fund (ARF) or
• Take taxable cash or
• Choose a combination of these options

Cash lump sum

You are entitled to a cash lump sum from your pension policy, normally up to 25% of your policy value (or, if you have a company pension, you can take your cash lump sum based on salary and service instead).

The first €200,000 will be tax free;
The next €300,000 will be taxed at 20%;
Anything more than €500,000 will be treated as income and taxed under the PAYE system.

If you've taken benefits from a pension already, any lump sum you received will count towards these limits, for more information please talk to your financial adviser.

You could use it to pay off your debts, fund that trip of a lifetime or invest it so that it has the potential to grow in a tax efficient way – it's entirely up to you.

Bear in mind that by taking a lump sum, you'll have less left in your pension fund with which to buy an annuity or invest in an approved retirement fund.

Annuity

You can use your pension fund to buy a guaranteed income for the rest of your life. You can choose to have your annuity income stay the same or automatically increase each year.

You can also choose for your spouse/civil partner to carry on being paid some or all of the income after you die.

The choices you make will affect the income you get, for example, the more you want your spouse/civil partner to be paid after your death, the lower your income will be.

The income stops when you (and your partner with a joint life annuity) die, so there are no funds to leave your dependants.

You can choose to have your income guaranteed for a number of years, so there is still an income paid after your early death.

What's the difference between an annuity and an ARF?

Do you want a guaranteed income (Annuity) or a flexible income (Approved Retirement Fund) or both?

Issue	Annuity	ARF
Payable for life	Yes - guaranteed income for life	No - ARF could run out while you're still alive
Access to income	A guaranteed income for life but no flexibility	Both occasional and regular income withdrawals are allowed.
Investment growth potential	None - You are locked into an annuity rate for life	Yes - your fund can grow or fall but you need to find a level of risk and reward that suits you
Passing on to your family	Your income stops when you die (it may be payable for longer if you have chosen a guaranteed period and/or a spouse/civil partner's annuity)	Your ARF can be left to your family (tax payable will depend on who you leave it to).

Approved retirement funds (ARF)

An approved retirement fund (ARF) allows you to leave your pension fund invested and adjust income to suit your needs. You must withdraw a certain percentage each year from your ARF:

4%, if you're 60 years of age or over for the full tax year, or
5%, if you're 70 years of age or over for the full tax year, or
6%, if you've a combined ARF and vested PRSA assets of €2 million or more, and aged 60 or over the full tax year.

An approved minimum retirement fund (AMRF) is an ARF that has restrictions on the amount you can withdraw each year. You can take one withdrawal each year, up to 4% of the value of the AMRF, any withdrawals from an ARF or AMRF are treated as income and are taxed under PAYE system.

With an ARF and AMRF, you can leave the funds to your family (tax payable will depend on who you leave it to).

What's the difference between an annuity and an ARF?

Do you want a guaranteed income (Annuity) or a flexible income (Approved Retirement Fund) or both?

Issue	Annuity	ARF
Payable for life	Yes - guaranteed income for life	No - ARF could run out while you're still alive
Access to income	A guaranteed income for life but no flexibility	Both occasional and regular income withdrawals are allowed.
Investment growth potential	None - You are locked into an annuity rate for life	Yes - your fund can grow or fall but you need to find a level of risk and reward that suits you
Passing on to your family	Your income stops when you die (it may be payable for longer if you have chosen a guaranteed period and/or a spouse/civil partner's annuity)	Your ARF can be left to your family (tax payable will depend on who you leave it to).

Ready to make a decision?

What you need to consider

To calculate your pension benefits, Revenue requires us to take all your pension arrangements into account, regardless of whether they are in payment or yet to be claimed

company pensions with your current and previous employers
personal pensions
PRSAs
self-administered schemes
buy out bonds

If you have a personal pension or PRSA with us and you want to retire or claim your policy

Please complete Retirement Instruction Form for Personal Pensions and PRSA with your financial adviser.

If you want to invest in an ARF and/or AMRF with us, using money currently invested with another provider, please complete ARF/AMRF application form with your financial adviser.

To avoid a delay in receiving your payments, you should complete the form and send to us with all supporting documents.

If you have a company pension, buy out bond or PRSA AVC

1. If you're unsure of your options, complete Retirement options - Questionnaire and send to Standard Life, 90 St Stephen's Green,Dublin 2.Upon receipt we'll calculate your benefits and give you options, you should then talk to your financial adviser

2. If you know what you want and decide to take your pension benefits, review and complete Retirement Instruction Form for Company Pensions, Buy Out Bonds and PRSA AVC with your financial adviser

If you want to invest in an ARF and/or AMRF with us, using money currently invested with another provider, please complete ARF/AMRF application form with your financial adviser.

To avoid a delay in receiving your payments, you should fully complete the form and send to us with all supporting documents.

Supporting documents that we need from you

Getting your documents certified

Combining your pensions could save you money

If you’ve got a few pension policies with different companies, it could make financial sense to bring them together. You'll be able to keep track of your investments at a glance and you may end up paying less in charges.

Is combining your policies right for you?

It depends on your circumstances, whilst taking the following into account.

If you're buying an annuity	More control - buying one annuity makes it easier to manage
If you're investing in an ARF	More control – a single set of figures makes it easier to review performance More choice – you may be able to choose from more investment options Fewer charges – one set of charges could save you money One point of contact – and with My Standard Life online you'll be able to check your policy value at a time that suits you. (annuities aren't on MyStandardLife)
Will you have to pay an exit charge?	Check if your policy has an exit charge and what the amount is
Could you lose a valuable benefit?	You won't be able to transfer features like guarantees – you may have a fund with a guarantee and/or a policy with a guaranteed annuity rate
Will you really save money on costs?	Check charges for new and existing pensions to be sure