If you wish to take early retirement and have accrued an early retirement pension through your employer, you will receive a temporary pension until your actual pension comes into payment. We refer to this as an early retirement pension. The government has now abolished the early retirement pension, meaning it will no longer be possible to accrue this type of pension.
You will receive a letter from us a few months before your early retirement date. This letter will specify the different options available to you and what you need to do to ensure your early retirement pension comes into payment. If you are not ready to retire just yet, you can choose to defer your early retirement – provided your employer agrees.
If you decide to continue working beyond the early retirement date, you can use your early retirement pension for a larger retirement pension. This is referred to as ‘exchange’. You will be entitled to exchange your early retirement pension only if the pension scheme rules permit this and if you are not fully incapacitated for work. Please visit your Pension 1-2-3 (in Dutch) for more information on this matter.
The most important condition that needs to be satisfied for the exchange of your early retirement pension is that you continue working the same number of hours as before. Your employer will also need to approve the exchange and the pension scheme rules must permit it.
If you wish to exchange your early retirement pension, you will need to submit a written request for this at least one month before the original early retirement date. Your employer will need to confirm your continued employment by completing a declaration of continued employment form (in Dutch).
If you are self-employed, please complete the following declaration of continued employment form (in Dutch).
There are several ways you can arrange for your early retirement pension to come into payment, depending on the type of pension scheme you have: an average pay scheme or a final pay scheme (a defined benefit agreement) or a defined contribution scheme (defined contribution agreement). If you are not sure what type of pension scheme you are a member of, please consult the information about the different types of pension schemes (in Dutch) or check your Uniform Benefit Statement (UBS).
If you are, you will have certainty regarding the amount that will be accrued by the early retirement date and the amount that will be paid out to you as an early retirement pension. You will receive a letter from us three months before the early retirement date, specifying which information you need to forward to us and what you need to do.
If you are, you will need to use your accrued pension capital to purchase an early retirement pension. This pension benefit is a temporary benefit and will usually be paid out to you only until your retirement pension comes into payment. You will receive a letter three months before the retirement date, providing an estimate of how much pension capital you can expect to receive on the retirement date. If you are using your pension capital to purchase an early retirement pension you will need to follow the procedure described below:
Your early retirement pension is set to end when you turn 65 at the latest. There has been an increase in the statutory retirement age over the past years, meaning your state pension may no longer seamlessly follow on from your pension payout. This could leave you with a state pension gap, resulting in a temporary loss of income. The government may be able to help in such circumstances by providing a bridging pension. You will need to satisfy certain conditions to be entitled to the bridging pension. The bridging scheme has primarily been set up for people on low incomes.
See whether you are entitled to receive a bridging pension (in Dutch)
Check whether you will have sufficient income in the future by using the Pension Check
It can be tricky trying to decide whether a specific course of action is advisable in your particular situation. If you require assistance in this decision-making process, contact an independent adviser. He or she is there to give you customized advice. Please be sure to discuss in advance what your adviser will charge for this service and if any additional services are required and what they entail.
You will receive a letter from us three months before your early retirement pension comes into payment. This letter will contain information regarding the level of the early retirement pension and the different options available to you in terms of this pension.
Please do not hesitate to contact us if you have any other questions. We are available on +31 (0)30 257 48 48 on working days from 8.30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Alternatively, you can complete the contact form. We will be pleased to help you.