We regularly hear that people would like to know more about their pension, but do not know where to begin. These four steps will help you to get more of a grip on your pension.
Step 1: Assess your income situation when you retire.
When you retire you will receive:
- Dutch State Pension (AOW-pension) (also referred to as the 1st pillar).
- The pension that you have accrued with Staples and any other employers (also referred to as the 2nd pillar).
- Income provisions which you may have arranged yourself (also referred to as the 3rd pillar).
AOW pension
Anyone who has lived in the Netherlands permanently during the 50 years before they reach AOW entitlement age is entitled to a full AOW benefit. If you have lived abroad for a certain period of time, you will receive less. In fact you will receive 2% less for each year that you lived abroad. The amount of your AOW pension is also dependent on your marital status. More information about the AOW pension can be found at www.svb.nl.
Staples pension
Every year you receive the Uniform Pension Statement (UPO) to inform you about how much you have accrued with Staples. The UPO is intended to give you an insight into your accrued pension. If you read the UPO, you will be aware of the situation regarding your Staples pension. You can also study your pension situation in My Pension.
Do you have several pensions?
All pension providers use the UPO to provide information in the same way. This means it is possible to add up all the pensions together. At mijnpensioenoverzicht.nl you can see where you have accrued pension. This is handy if you have had several employers, because it gives you a good insight into your total pension.
Income provisions which you may have arranged yourself
This means additional income that you may have arranged in the form of insurance, savings, or by having accrued capital in some other way. If, for example, you have taken out annuity insurance or a single premium insurance policy, these will contribute to your income in later life.
Take account of other special life events
Events such as a divorce, working part-time or being unemployed for a certain period of time will have an effect on your pension. For example, your ex-partner will be entitled to half the pension you accrued during the period that you were married. If you stop working for an employer, your pension will also stop accruing. If you stop working for a certain period of time, you will not accrue any pension during that period.
On this website you will find more information about your pension scheme in the Pension 1-2-3. You can also see the effect of various choices on your future pension in My Planner.
Step 2: Reflect on what you will need later on
The key question is, how much pension do you actually need? In the future your wishes may well be completely different to now. Undoubtedly, your monthly costs will then be different as well. You may have paid off your house and your children may have left home. Or maybe your children are still studying and your living costs may not have gone down yet. When you reach AOW entitlement age your tax situation also changes and that too will affect your income. If you have a partner who also starts receiving pension, you should check how much difference there is between having two pensions instead of two salaries.
Step 3: Decide whether you are accruing enough pension
If you compare step 1 and step 2 with each other, you will be able to see whether you are accruing sufficient pension. If this is not the case, you can take measures. For example you can start saving more. It is also important to assess (together) what you want and are able to do. Will your pension income also be sufficient if you and your partner split up, or if one of you were to pass away? If this is not the case, you can take measures as well, for example by saving more, or by taking out an insurance policy (3rd pillar). It may be that the various choices available within your pension offer the right solution. You can check out the various options in My Pension.
Step 4: Annual check: assess your situation regularly and ask for clarification
You should check at least once a year to see whether your pension still matches your situation and your wishes. Have you started working part-time? Have you got married or do you now have children? Will you be able to pay off your mortgage before you reach state pension age? Every now and again you should ask an independent advisor for advice about your current situation and your financial future. If you have any questions about your pension with Staples, the pension fund would be pleased to help you. Alternatively you can refer My Planner, where you can make calculations on the basis of various pension situations. Another option is to contact the pension service department.