Question 1

Receipt of the OASI pension from the 1st pillar

Accepted Answer

With partial retirement it is possible that from the age of 63 and up to the age of 70, you can receive a partial pension from the 1st pillar. This must be done in three steps of between 20 and 80 percent, for example: 30 percent of the pension from the age of 63, a further 30 percent from the age of 65 and finally 40 percent from the age of 67.

Women born between 1961 and 1969 can still draw their OASI pension early from the age of 62 because their reference age is 64. But from 2025, the reference age for this group will be gradually aligned to that of men at the age of 65.

Worth knowing

Whether the early withdrawal of the OASI pension is worthwile, depends on the individual’s tax situation and estimated life expectancy.

Question 2

Staggered provision of the 2nd pillar

Accepted Answer

In the occupational pension scheme, the exact conditions for partial retirement depend on your employer and the regulations of your pension fund. Depending on the fund, you can implement partial retirement in several stages. Most insurance companies accept reductions of at least 20 percent.

You have room for maneuver when it comes to the payout: If you have your assets paid out as an annuity, this can be done in several stages. If you opt for a pure lump-sum payment or for a payment as an annuity plus lump-sum, this may only be made in a maximum of three steps. A payout in installments can be worthwhile, because less tax is payable than if you have the entire capital paid out in one go. The cantonal taxation plays a role in the question of whether it is worth paying out as a lump-sum or an annuity – in this regard, the OASI reform has opened up new structuring options.

Question 3

If you don’t draw your OASI pension early

Accepted Answer

If you waive the option to draw your OASI pension early, your entitlement will remain unaffected for the time being. The amount of contributions you have to pay are recalculated based on the new working hours and salary once you take semiretirement. If your working hours fall below 50% and/or you work less than nine months in one year, you should check with your OASI compensation office whether you have to pay additional OASI contributions for nonemployed persons.

Question 4

If you do draw your OASI pension early

Accepted Answer

In the case of semiretirement, you can receive a partial pension from the first pillar from age 63 until you turn 70. This must be done in three steps between 20% and 80%, for example as follows: 30% of the pension from age 63, another 30% from age 65 and finally the remaining 40% from age 67.

Since 2025, the reference age for women born between 1961 and 1969 has been gradually brought into line with that of men, i.e. 65. Until that point, women could draw their OASI pension early from the age of 62 because their reference age was 64. From 2028, the reference age of 65 will apply to both sexes.

If you opt to draw your pension early, you should know that this will mean a lifelong pension reduction. The reduction (as at 2025) is 6.8% for each year that it is drawn early. If you only draw part of it early, which may make sense in the case of semiretirement, only the portion drawn early is reduced accordingly. Women born between 1961 and 1969 (transitional generation under OASI 21) can benefit from a lower reduction if they draw their pension early but waive their entitlement to a pension supplement.

Question 5

With advance withdrawal of pillar 3a assets

Accepted Answer

You can withdraw your pillar 3 assets five years before you reach the reference age at the earliest. If you withdraw pillar 3a assets, this will help you to cover any loss of income that may have arisen as a result of semiretirement. Ideally, you will have spread your pillar 3a pension capital across several investment options.

Question 6

Without advance withdrawal of pillar 3a assets

Accepted Answer

You can postpone receiving your pillar 3a benefits for up to five years beyond the reference age, but only if you continue to work. So if you continue to work part-time beyond the age of 65 and earn an income subject to OASI, you can still pay contributions into pillar 3 and deduct them from your taxable income. The maximum annual contribution you can pay into pillar 3a is CHF 7,258 (in 2025) if you pay pension fund contributions. If you do not pay into a pension fund, the maximum amount is CHF 36,288 per year (in 2025) or up to 20% of your net earned income.

Question 7

Staggered withdrawal of pillar 3a assets

Accepted Answer

Making staggered withdrawals of the assets accrued in pillar 3a means you can benefit from considerable tax advantages. However, this is only possible if you plan in advance, as you have to withdraw the entire amount at once when you close a pillar 3a account. To avoid this and enable staggered withdrawals, you must set up several pillar 3a accounts. This allows you to distribute your accrued assets and withdraw the full amount in each account individually. This reduces your tax burden compared to a one-time withdrawal of the total amount. However, please note that pillar 3a accounts can never be split retrospectively. So if you want to withdraw assets from several accounts, you must also build them up in parallel. If you also make lump-sum withdrawals from the pension fund in the same year, these will be taxed together with the assets from pillar 3, which leads to higher taxes in most cantons. In this case, it’s particularly worthwhile spreading the withdrawals over different calendar years.

Question 8

With advance withdrawal of benefits

Accepted Answer

With each partial retirement step, you have the option of making either a partial lump-sum withdrawal or drawing a partial pension that corresponds to your reduction in working hours. This allows you to have your pension fund assets paid out in several steps. Both options have advantages and disadvantages and should be tailored to your individual situation. Bear in mind that an advance withdrawal will reduce your future retirement benefits. Take this into account in your budget planning and build up the necessary funds elsewhere if you need to.

In the case of occupational pensions, the exact conditions for semiretirement depend on your employer and the regulations of your pension fund. All pension funds must offer semiretirement in at least three stages. Partial retirement must be offered if you reduce your working hours by at least 20%. If you have your pension fund assets paid out as a pension (annuity), this can also be done in several stages. If you decide on purely a lump-sum payment or to have the pension and a lump sum paid out, then a maximum of three steps are possible for a lump-sum payment.

Having the full amount paid out in installments can be worth doing because your tax burden is lower than if you have the entire capital paid out in one go. Cantonal taxation plays a role when assessing what makes more sense – thanks to the OASI reform, there are now more options available. If you decide to draw a pension and make a lump-sum withdrawal, you should check in which step a pension makes more sense and in which the lump sum makes more sense. The most important thing is the conversion rate your pension fund uses – this is the formula for converting the savings capital into a pension. It changes over time. However, if a pension is paid out, this amount remains fixed, regardless of how the conversion rate changes in the future. If it is more likely to decrease over time, you could consider drawing a pension. However, because the conversion rate increases as you get older, opting for a pension may also be advisable for the last step.

Good to know

A lump-sum withdrawal must be registered with your pension fund. The deadlines can vary from a few months to several years. The best way to do this is to take a look at your pension fund’s regulations.

Question 9

Without advance withdrawal of benefits

Accepted Answer

If you decide not to make an advance withdrawal, your insured salary is reduced in proportion to the lower working hours, which means that both you and your employer will pay in less. If this is the case, your accrued retirement benefits will remain untouched for the time being, but future benefits will decrease due to lower contributions. You can compensate for this by making voluntary purchases or making additional savings in pillar 3a. Many pension funds offer the option of continuing to insure your previous salary when you reduce your working hours by up to a maximum of 50%. This means that you continue to pay the same pension fund contributions despite your income being lower. However, you generally pay both the employee and the employer contributions on the portion that corresponds to the reduced working hours, which means a further decrease in your net income.

Save today, benefit tomorrow

Content:

Semiretirement and the three pillars of pension provision

Semiretirement under OASI (pillar 1)

Semiretirement from a pension fund perspective (pillar 2)

Semiretirement: restricted private pension (pillar 3)

How is your retirement provision?

Measures to close pension gaps

How much can I save on taxes with pillar 3a?

Tax advantages of semiretirement thanks to lump-sum withdrawals

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