When can I cash in on my group insurance plan?

​In certain (rare) cases, you may be allowed to claim your group insurance proceeds earlier. To find out if you qualify, your company's HR department is your first port of call.

You can claim your complementary pension benefits in the following cases:

• You have reached statutory retirement age, and the option to cash in on your complementary pension as of this date is expressly stated in your pension plan regulations.

• You meet the requirements for early statutory retirement, and the option to cash in on your complementary pension on your early retirement date is expressly stated in your pension plan regulations.

• You meet the following age requirements (transitional arrangement - in other words, the younger you were in 2016, the older you must be today to be eligible for the measure), and the pension plans regulations in effect prior to 1 January 2016 allow plan participants to collect their benefits at this time.

• You were born in 1958 or before and you are currently at least 60.
• You were born in 1959 and you are currently at least 61.
• You were born in 1960 and you are currently at least 62.
• You were born in 1961 and you are currently at least 63.

• You lost your job as of age 55 and are the beneficiary of an unemployment scheme that is part of a restructuring plan (redundancy plan) drawn up and filed with the (regional and federal) Ministry of Employment prior to 1 October 2015, you are currently ≥ 60, and the pension plan regulations in effect prior to 1 January 2016 allow plan participants to collect their benefits at this time.

For more information about the tax consequences of cashing in early on your complementary pension entitlements, click here.

 MyAG Employee Benefits

Ask your employer to get the ball rolling with your access rights to MyAG Employee Benefits, our online pension platform specially developed for AG Employee Benefits affiliates. It has all the answers to your burning questions about your complementary pension:

• How much have you accrued to date?
• How much will you collect when you retire?

You'll then receive an invitation with instructions on how to register on MyAG Employee Benefits. Once you've completed the registration process, you'll be able to log in and check the maturity date of your pension plan(s) as well as all kinds of other useful information.

Want to find out more? Take a look at our home page.

You can also download the MyAG Employee Benefits app from your app store. This way, you always have all information about your insurance covers at your fingertips.

 The nitty gritty: how do I claim my complementary pension?

Claiming your complementary pension is very simple and doesn't require you to do much of anything yourself. Just keep in mind that the procedure will differ depending on whether the payer is your past or present employer:

• Your current employer will contact you a few months prior to your retirement date to go through the formalities with you. Your group insurance proceeds will be released to you when you retire, via your employer's pension institution.
• To collect the group insurance entitlements you earned with previous employers, you simply contact the pension institution once you've retired. As of 2017, your pension institution will be notified directly of your retirement by the federal government.