I have a question regarding Wise. To open an account with Wise, do you have to have an account in your own country, NL, Belgium or Europe? Or can a pension fund also transfer it directly to Wise?
Pension fund does not accept life certificates
Have a pension from Pension Fund Healthcare and Welfare. For the first time they are sending a proof of life. I always sent the form signed by the SVB in Chiang Mai to them with a stamp, never a problem. Now sent to them again, and received a message that it has been rejected with the motivation that it must be done by a competent authority, such as the police or notary or town hall. But as far as I know they don't do that. Are there any readers with similar experiences?
Telegraaf: €2,4 billion in 'forgotten' pension money in the Netherlands due to emigration and ignorance
In De Telegraaf we read a remarkable article about 450.000 'forgotten' pension pots in the Netherlands with a total value of €2,4 billion. According to the Netherlands Authority for the Financial Markets and the pension funds involved, this is a considerable problem. While many of these pots are small, amounting to less than $100 per year, there are also significant amounts of $15.000 per year that have not been raised.
Support the Stichting Pensioen Voldoen your claim to do justice to pension indexation! (reader submission)
The Dutch State and the Dutch Bank have for years prevented pension funds from increasing their members' pension benefits, while indexation according to earned assets was possible in those years. Both the State and the Bank have pursued a rigid policy, contrary to European directives. That is why a former civil servant has demanded an advance on the indexation damage suffered by the court in The Hague in preliminary relief proceedings.
Reader question: Exemption from pension fund tax and AOW
I have an exemption from the Dutch tax authorities for social insurance and the like for my pension fund and AOW, on the understanding that 9.7% is withheld from the AOW for payroll tax. I have to renew that exemption every 5 years which is reasonable.
Reader Submission: No proof of life to be sent
Today I received the following correspondence from the pension fund SBZ (Stichting Bedrijfstakpensioenfonds Zorgverzekeraars): You do not need to send proof of life now. The board of SBZ Pensioen has decided to make a one-off exception for this year.
Millions of Dutch people will still have to deal with pension cuts, according to a number of large pension funds. There is not enough money in cash to meet the requirements of the government, 7 million Dutch people will feel that in their wallets.
The corona crisis will probably also have far-reaching consequences for pensioners. The financial markets have collapsed and with it the funding ratios of pension funds. Four of the five largest pension funds are already in trouble. For some, the funding ratio is even below 85 percent.
A question about the living proof. Got that for SVB at the SSO, but they didn't know where to get that for pension funds. In my case ABP and Zorg & Welzijn. Who knows where I can get that in Chiangmai?
Last week, the director of PfZW, the largest pension fund in the healthcare and welfare sector, reported that the fund is not in a good financial position. The current funding ratio had fallen to 2019% in July 94,8.
The Dutch Central Bank warns that many pension funds are still struggling with financial problems. If that remains the case, 2 million participants at three large pension funds will have their supplementary pension cuts on 1 January. The following year, another 33 pension funds with 7,7 million participants may face cutbacks.
Two million Dutch people may have their pension reduced
It seems almost inevitable that just under two million pensioners and working people will have their pension cuts next year and that may also affect pensioners in Thailand. Especially the pension funds in the metal industry, PME and PMT, had a bad last quarter after the stock market collapse.
The legal aspect of an Attestation de Vita
Pensioners who have deregistered in the Netherlands and live in Thailand, for example, are familiar with the Attestation de Vita. It is written proof, which is required by pension funds, among others, to demonstrate that someone is (still) alive. This means that after the death of someone, the pension benefit is stopped.
The funding ratios of the five largest industry pension funds rose slightly in the third quarter of 2018.
The pension funds are doing slightly better thanks to good investment results and higher interest rates in 2017. Small funds can again partially index. This is reported by De Nederlandsche Bank (DNB).
Falling stock prices have damaged the recovery of the large Dutch pension funds. The five largest industry funds, including ABP, have announced that their financial position has deteriorated. As a result, the pension of many Dutch people will not be increased for the time being, a reduction cannot be ruled out.
The funding ratios of pension funds rose slightly across the board last year. This was mainly due to positive returns on equity investments. Pension cuts do not appear to be occurring this year, or at most incidentally. A number of funds can once again let the pensions grow partly or wholly in line with inflation, according to the Pension Federation in a press release.