A limited company can fund a Directors Pension for its owner up to a maximum of €2,000,000.
A Directors Pension, or executive pension as it’s also known, is a company pension plan set up for the benefit of one single employee. It is regulated and administered to the same degree as any other company scheme.
Like all company schemes it can be used to build up maximum benefits. This means an amount of money sufficient to but a pension income up to two thirds of your final salary.
But it’s important to note that this doesn’t mean that you have to take it as a fixed income. This is just used to calculate the maximum benefits you’re allowed to accumulate.
For example, let’s just say that your salary at 65 will be €90,000.
This means you could have a pension that would pay you €60,000 p.a. in retirement.
To keep things simple we could assume a simple 4% annuity rate to work out your benefits.
Using 4% would mean that you could have a total pension fund at 65 of €1,500,000 (i.e. €60,000/4% = €1,500,000).
The actual amount you can have will be based on a number of personal factors.
These include things like your age, your income level and marital status.
You can find your exact director pension entitlements using our calculator.
Who Else is Involved in the Process?
Outside of revenue, there are 5 parties involved in a directors pension;
You are the beneficiary of the funds at retirement.
Your company facilitates the plan.
Your investment provider manages the assets.
A trustee oversees the legal requirements.
Your financial advisor acts as your investment advisor.
Who Approves a Directors Pension?
Directors pensions are legal entities and require approval from the revenue commissioners.
The approval process starts once the plan itself has issued and can take anywhere from 6 to 12 months.
As you can imagine, the process is very strict but we can help you through it all.
Special Contributions to a Directors Pension.
One unique benefit for directors is that they can buy back service.
And this can be done up to 40 years!
It’s a big advantage as it allows directors to quickly catch up on lost years.
And it can be done as a large one-off contribution through the company.
What Do I Need to Set Up a Directors Pension?
To establish a directors pension the following personal details are needed;
Your Drivers license, Passport or Social Services card.
A utility bill to confirm your address.
Your PPS number with a copy of a recent pay slip.
Confirmation of the date you joined the company.
Confirmation of your company shareholding.
Details of pension benefits from previous employments.
Details of current company pensions.
Your company registration number & VAT number.
Company Bank Account Details.
How Do I Get Started?
The first thing is to understand your numbers which you can do here.
After that, you should speak to an advisor to discuss your unique circumstances.
If you want to discuss your options with me then just give me a call.
You can get me today on 01 442 3929 or 087 123 2475.
Alternatively, just drop me an email to kevin@thepensionstore.ie
Talk to you soon,
Kevin