1 February 2023

The Future Pensions Act has been discussed and approved by the House of Representatives. If it is also approved by the Senate, the new regulations will enter into force. This is expected to occur on 1 July 2023. The pension fund will then have until 1 January 2027 to implement all of the adjustments.

Lump sum postponed to 1 January 2024
The legislative proposal states that the section on lump sum payments will take effect on 1 July 2023. This has since been postponed. Lump sum payment refers to the ability to withdraw up to 10% of your pension in one amount immediately upon retirement. In this article, we discuss the postponement of the lump sum payment.

Lump sum payment option postponed yet again
Minister Carola Schouten of Social Affairs and Employment informed the House of Representatives that this option will be ‘provisionally’ postponed until 1 January 2024. Introduction has been delayed due to insufficient preparation time for pension funds and insurance providers. Pension funds need to properly inform their participants and adjust their schemes. Hence the postponement.

Are you retiring in 2023? Then you may make use of the existing options
Due to delays in legislation, it will not be possible to choose a lump sum payment in 2023. Our pension scheme does include several other options for adjusting your pension to suit your needs. For example, you may choose to retire early. You can also opt for higher benefits during the first few years after retirement and lower benefits later. To view all of the retirement options, please visit our website.

Do you plan to retire after 1 January 2024? In this case, you can opt for the lump sum payment
The lump sum payment option allows you to withdraw up to 10% of your pension in one amount immediately upon retirement. This is one of the agreements reached by the Dutch government and the social partners in the Pension Agreement. This option has been postponed a few times. The legislative proposal has yet to be approved by the Dutch Parliament. For lump sum payments to take effect on 1 January 2024, approval needs to be obtained before the summer. As such, it is possible for introduction to be further delayed.

There are conditions attached to withdrawing a lump sum payment
A lump sum payment will also affect your pension benefits and may affect your allowances and taxes. You can find more information on the Future Pensions Act and lump sum payment on our Pension Agreement page.