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Opening hours are Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm, Callbacks scheduled up to 8pm
The third pillar can be a great way to save for your child’s university or start-up costs. Using a pillar 3b – with unrestricted access and unlimited contributions – means you can set up a regular payment that comes to fruition when your child reaches 18 (or however long you decide to set it up for). Utilizing a capital guarantee ensures you will reach your goal, and the right investment provides the opportunity to surpass it. Withdrawals from a regular 3b are free from tax.
The Swiss government realized a long time ago that State and company pensions would only provide a basic standard of living. To encourage people to take ownership of their own futures, the government introduced the third pillar pension, incentivised with a tax break.
However, the investment within the third pillar can be as – if not more – interesting than the tax saving. By choosing the right investment, you can expect c.4% p.a. with a capital guarantee, or 5-10% p.a. using funds. Our advisers are experts in matching investments to meet your needs.
The third pillar can also be used to buy or repay a property in Switzerland.
It can be used as part of the deposit (max 50%), or to repay the mortgage (indirect amortization).
In both cases, it is possible to make significant savings in tax and growth. However, you must also make sure you do not use pension funds now that will leave you with too little in retirement.
The government supports people saving for their retirement by making contributions to the pillar 3a tax deductible. The average tax saving is CHF 2,000. Even better, if you are married and both working you can double the tax saving! That’s an average of CHF 4,000 saved in tax per couple.
The maximum employed people can contribute to the pillar 3a is CHF 6,768 per person. Self-employed people can contribute up to a massive CHF 33,840 per year.
For those in French-speaking Switzerland (Romandy), tax deductions can also be made for pillar 3b, limited to certain maximums (click here for more details). For example, in Geneva a family of 5 could contribute up to CHF 19,583 per year, leading to a tax saving of around CHF 5,875.
What is Pillar 3b?
What is Pillar 3a?
Income 2016 = CHF 100,000 – CHF 6,768 (Pillar 3a contribution) = CHF 93,232
