Your retirement options

Planning for retirement - your pension options

You'll have lots to consider when the time comes to take your pension benefits. Things like your tax position and relationship status. The way you feel about risk. Even your general health.

You'll also need to gather a lot of documents together. That can take some time, so it's good to get started well ahead of your retirement date. You'll find more information on the documents we need in the 'Things to think about' section below.

We'd also recommend that you speak with a financial adviser. They'll help you make the decisions that will work best for you. If you don't already have an adviser, try brokersireland.ie to find one in your area.

Your pension options

You can take your benefits from age 60 or keep working and adding to your pension fund. In fact, you can delay taking your benefits up to age 75. When the time comes, you have a few ways to access the benefits:

Taking a cash lump sum

You can take a cash lump sum of up to 25% of your pension fund.

The first €200,000 will be tax free
The next €300,000 will be taxed at 20%
Anything over €500,000 will be taxed as income under the Pay As You Earn (PAYE) system

If you've already taken benefits from a pension, any lump sum you received from that counts towards these limits. Your financial adviser will be able to explain how it works in more detail.

Taking the balance

You have several options on what to do with the remainder of your pension fund:

Buy a guaranteed pension income for life (called an annuity)
Invest in an approved retirement fund (ARF)
Draw down funds as taxable cash
Choose a combination of these options

If you're seriously ill and need to retire early

If you have to give up work because of illness or disability, you may be able to take your benefits before you reach age 60. You'll need to give us medical evidence of your condition. Ask your GP or attending physician to complete our Ill health questionnaire and then send it to our Chief Medical Officer at: Standard Life, 90 St Stephen's Green, Dublin D02 F653.

Want to know more about your personal pension options? Click here.

If you'd like to see how your pension options compare to each other, visit the compare pensions page.

If you're an employee and retiring from your current role you can take your benefits as early as age 50. For everyone else the earliest is age 60. Or you can choose to keep working and adding to your pension fund up to the age of 75. When you decide to take your benefits, you have a few options:

Taking a cash lump sum

You can take a cash lump sum of up to 25% of your pension fund.

The first €200,000 will be tax free
The next €300,000 will be taxed at 20%
Anything over €500,000 will be taxed as income under the Pay As You Earn (PAYE) system

If you've already taken benefits from a pension, any lump sum you received from that counts towards these limits. Your financial adviser will be able to explain how it works in more detail.

Taking the balance

You have several options on what to do with the remainder of your pension fund:

Buy a guaranteed pension income for life (called an annuity)
Invest in an approved retirement fund (ARF)
Draw down funds as taxable cash
Choose a combination of these options

If you're seriously ill and need to retire early

Click here to find out more about our PRSA, or visit the compare pensions page for an at-a-glance guide to your options.

In certain circumstances you might be able to take early retirement from age 50. Otherwise you can take your pension benefits from age 60, or keep working and adding to your pension fund until age 70. When you decide to retire, you have a few options:

Taking a cash lump sum

You can take a cash lump sum of up to 25% of your pension fund, or a lump sum based on your salary and length of service.

The first €200,000 will be tax free
The next €300,000 will be taxed at 20%
Anything over €500,000 will be taxed as income under the Pay As You Earn (PAYE) system

If you've already taken benefits from a pension, any lump sum you received from that counts towards these limits. Your financial adviser will be able to explain how it works in more detail.

Taking the balance

You have several options on what to do with the remainder of your pension fund:

Buy a guaranteed pension income for life (called an annuity)
Invest in an approved retirement fund (ARF)
Draw down funds as taxable cash
Choose a combination of these options

If you're seriously ill and need to retire early

Click here to find out more about our executive pension, or visit the compare pensions page for an at-a-glance guide to your options.

Your retirement options are restricted if you no longer live in the Republic of Ireland. We recommend speaking with a financial adviser or our customer support team on 01 639 7000 to find out more.

The right choice for your retirement

Accessing your pension benefits

You have a few options when it comes to accessing your pension benefits. You'll normally be able to take a cash lump sum of 25% of the policy value (see below for details). With the balance of your fund, subject to Revenue rules, you can:

Buy a guaranteed taxable pension income (annuity) for the rest of your life
Invest in an approved retirement fund (ARF)
Draw down taxable cash
Combine these options

You're entitled to take a cash lump sum from your pension policy. That's normally up to 25% of the policy value. If you have a company pension, you can take your lump sum based on salary and service.

How you use that money is up to you. Pay off your debts, take the trip of a lifetime or find a tax-efficient way to invest so it has the potential to grow. It's important to remember, though, that taking a lump sum means having less to spend on an annuity or invest in an approved retirement fund.

Paying tax on your lump sum:

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 already taken benefits from a pension, any lump sum you received from that counts towards these limits. Your financial adviser will be able to explain how it works in more detail.

An annuity is a product that gives you a guaranteed income for the rest of your life. You have various options to choose from:

An annuity income that stays the same or automatically increases each year
Have some or all of the income paid to a spouse or civil partner after you die
Income guaranteed for a number of years, which means it's still paid even if you die before the term ends

Income on an Annuity is taxed under the PAYE system

The choice you make affects the income you get. For example, the more income you want your spouse or civil partner to have after your death, the lower your income in life will be.

What's the difference between an annuity and an Approved Retirement Fund (ARF)?

An annuity offers a guaranteed income. An ARF offers flexible income. You can choose either or a combination of both. This table gives you an at-a-glance guide to the pros and cons of each:

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)

Find out more about annuities

An ARF offers flexibility. You leave your pension fund invested, and can adjust your income to suit your needs. You do, however, have to withdraw a certain percentage each year, depending on your circumstances:

If you're 60 years old or over for the full tax year, you must withdraw 4%
If you're 70 years old or over for the full tax year, you must withdraw 5%
If you have combined ARF and vested PRSA assets of €2 million or more, and you're aged 60 or over for the full tax year, you must withdraw 6%

Withdrawals on an ARF are treated as income and are taxed under the PAYE system.

If there are funds remaining in your ARF after you die, you can leave them to your family. The tax your beneficiaries pay depends on their individual circumstances.

What's the difference between an annuity and an Approved Retirement Fund (ARF)?

An annuity offers a guaranteed income. An ARF offers flexible income. You can choose either or a combination of both. This table gives you an at-a-glance guide to the pros and cons of each:

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)

Find out more about approved retirement funds.

Things to think about

Almost ready to make your decision? That's great – there are just a few more things we need to let you know.

Revenue rules say we must take all your pension arrangements into account when we're working out your pension benefits. That applies to any benefits you're already receiving, as well as any you haven't yet claimed, and includes:

Company pensions with current and previous employers
Personal pensions (sometimes called Retirement Annuity Contracts)
Personal Retirement Savings Accounts (PRSAs)
Self-administered schemes
Buy out bonds (sometimes called personal retirement bonds)

You'll need to complete the Retirement Instruction Form for Personal Pensions and PRSA with your financial adviser. If you'd like to use money currently invested with another provider to invest in an ARF with us, complete the ARF Application Form with your financial adviser.

Make sure you include all the information and supporting documents we need to avoid any delay in receiving your payments.

If you know how you'd like to take your pension benefits, just fill in the Retirement Instruction Form for Company Pensions, buy out bonds and PRSA AVC with your financial adviser. If you'd like to use money currently invested with another provider to invest our ARF complete the ARF Application Form with your financial adviser.

If you're not sure which option is best for you, you can complete our Retirement Options Questionnaire and send it to us at: Standard Life, 90 St Stephen's Green, Dublin D02 F653. Once we get it we'll work out your benefits and give you options to discuss with a financial adviser.

Make sure you include all the information and supporting documents we need to avoid any delay in receiving your payments.

If you're instructing us about how you'd like to take your pension benefits, or that you want to move your money into our ARF, we'll need some supporting documents from you. These are:

A certified copy bank statement dated within the last six months (for paying withdrawal payments into) if you paid your contributions from a different account or if you haven't completed the retirement instruction form
Copy of proof of address dated within the last six months
Copy of valid photographic proof of identity (for example, an unexpired passport or driving licence)

This is a brief summary and the lists or not exhaustive. We reserve the right to ask for additional documentation and/or certification of copies. Contact us if you need more information.

Take a photocopy of your bank statement and have it stamped and signed by one of the people listed below to certify it's the same as the originals. Please note that copies of your photo ID and address verification don't need to be certified.

Copies of your documents can be certified by:

A qualified financial adviser
An Garda Siochana
A chartered accountant
A solicitor or notary public
A financial institution (eg your bank or building society)
An Post
Your GP

If you have questions

We know it's likely you'll have questions about your pension and retirement options, and we've tried to answer the ones we hear most often. Please remember, we're always here to help if you need us. Don't hesitate to get in touch.

Combining pension plans

If you have a few pension policies with different companies, it could save you money to bring them together because you may pay less in charges. You'll also be able to keep track of your investments at a glance.

Like all other financial decisions, it depends on your personal circumstances. This table shows you some of the things to think about when considering whether to combine different policies. A financial adviser will be able to give you any further information you might need.

Will you have to pay an exit charge?	Some policies carry an exit charge – check to see if yours has one and, if so, how much it will be.
Could you lose a valuable benefit?	If you have a policy or policies offering specific guarantees, like a set level of annuity rates, you'll lose them when you transfer to another policy. Make sure you weigh up the benefits you could lose against those you might gain.
Will you save money on costs?	Check the charges you pay now and against what you might pay on a new policy.
Benefits of buying an annuity	You'll have more control over your money – Buying one annuity makes everything easier to manage. (NB: Annuities cannot be combined once they have been established)
Benefits of investing in an ARF	You'll only have one set of figures to work with, making it easier to review performance You may be able to choose from more investment options A single set of charges could save you money One point of contact – and with My Standard Life online you can check your ARF policy value at times that suits you. (NB: you can't access annuities through MyStandardLife)

Transferring pensions isn't the right move for everyone. Talk to your financial adviser before you decide, or contact us on (01) 639 7070. Calls to this number may be monitored and/or recorded to protect you and us and to help with training. Call charges will vary.

Find out more about combining your pensions with Standard Life.

Warning: The value of your Approved Retirement Fund investment may go down as well as up

Warning: Your Approved Retirement Fund invest may be affected by changes in currency exchange rates

Warning: If you invest in Approved Retirement Fund you may lose some or all of the money you invest

Warning: Income from your Approved Retirement Fund investment may go down as well as up

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Your retirement options

Planning for retirement - your pension options

Your pension options

The right choice for your retirement

Things to think about

Combining pension plans

Useful links

How much income will I need in retirement?

Planning for retirement

Our Second Life Guide

Your retirement options

Planning for retirement - your pension options

Your pension options

The right choice for your retirement

Things to think about

Combining pension plans

Share via

Useful links

How much income will I need in retirement?

Planning for retirement

Our Second Life Guide