Can I Keep My Pillar 3A Funds After Retirement?

As a general rule, your assets in the pillar 3a – including pillar 3a retirement fund shares – must be liquidated and withdrawn when you reach retirement age. But is it possible to remain invested in a retirement fund outside of the pillar 3a? Find answers to this and other questions in this moneyland.ch guide.

Is it possible to keep my pillar 3a funds after I reach retirement age?

Although you are required to move your assets out of the pillar 3a at retirement age, many banks let you keep your investments rather than liquidate them. One of four scenarios will apply, depending on which service provider you use.

There are two scenarios in which you may be allowed to remain invested:

• Scenario 1: The fund used for your pillar 3a can also be used for regular investments outside of the pillar 3a. In this case, your fund shares are simply transferred from the pillar 3a retirement foundation to your personal stock brokerage account.
• Scenario 2: The pillar 3a fund has a non-pillar 3a counterpart. In this case, the pillar 3a retirement foundation sells your shares in the pillar 3a fund and uses the money to buy shares in the non-pillar 3a version of the fund. The shares are transferred to your personal stock brokerage account. 

In the third and fourth scenarios, you cannot remain invested in the same fund, and must reinvest your money in other ways after withdrawing it from the pillar 3a:

• Scenario 3: When you reach retirement age, your shares in the pillar 3a retirement fund will be sold. You have the option of reinvesting the money using other solutions from the same service provider if you choose to.
• Scenario 4: When you reach retirement age, your shares in the pillar 3a retirement fund will be sold, and the money will be transferred to a bank account in your name. This is typically the case when the service provider does not offer solutions for investing outside the pillar 3a.

No matter which service provider you use, providers only make changes at the request of customers, not automatically. This applies regardless of the scenario. In addition, you always have the option of transferring the money to a bank account in your name.

What does the move to non-pillar 3a investment solutions cost?

Many service providers do not charge you any fees for transferring your investment from pillar 3a funds to non-pillar 3a funds. This is the case with Bank Cler, the Basler Kantonalbank, Migros Bank, Valiant, and Viac.

However, there are service providers that charge brokerage fees when they buy shares in the non-pillar 3a fund. Examples include Raiffeisen, Tellco, and the Banque Cantonale Vaudoise (BCV). Tellco and BCV discount the fees for existing customers. Discounts at Raiffeisen vary between individual Raiffeisen banks. 

Which service providers let me remain invested?

The table below shows you which service providers let you keep your retirement funds.

When is it advantageous to remain invested?

Before you decide to keep your money invested in the same fund, it is advisable to analyze your overall financial situation. The analysis should account for your pension benefits, real estate, and (non-pillar 3a) savings.

Keeping your retirement savings invested in securities after withdrawing them from the pillar 3a is primarily beneficial if you will not need the money for many years. In that case, keeping your investments makes sense because they can potentially continue to gain in value. Additionally, by remaining invested, you extend the investment term. As a general rule, investing in securities is worth considering if you will not need the money for at least 10 years.

But it is always important to understand that there is never a guarantee that your investments will gain in value. That is true both before and after you reach retirement age. When you remain invested after retirement age, there is always a risk that your savings will lose value and you will end up with less money. You should be aware of that risk. 

More on this topic:
Compare pillar 3a retirement funds now
Compare pillar 3a savings accounts now
The Swiss three-pillar pension system explained