Pension

Saving for retirement is a critical piece of your future financial security, and Fisher Investments Ireland is here to help you maximise your potential by offering a pension plan with generous company contributions.

Overview

Your compensation is your livelihood, not just today, but tomorrow as well. We strive to equip you with sound financial features and a retirement you can look forward to.

As a Fisher Investments Ireland employee, you have the benefit of a subsidised and tax-efficient way to provide for your retirement income through the Fisher Investments Ireland supplemental retirement pension. Learn more about your Mercer Aspire Pension Plan.

Key benefits of joining the pension plan
  • Company contributions – Fisher Investments Ireland contributes to your account, which along with any Additional Voluntary Contributions (“AVC”) you make, will help to boost your retirement income.
  • Tax relief – Contributions you make to your account are eligible for tax relief at your marginal (highest) tax rate. In any tax year, your contributions are limited according to your age and Ireland Revenue sets the annual percentage. Company contributions do not count against these limits. In addition to this, you will not be taxed on gains made on the investment of your contributions.
  • Lump sum payment – You will be entitled to a lump sum on retirement, which for most people can be taken tax-free.
  • Peace of mind – By participating in the pension plan, you’ll enjoy peace of mind knowing you have taken an important step towards a financially secure retirement.

Resources

Enrolment and Contributions

Joining the pension plan is easy. You can enrol online through Workday by following these enrolment instructions.

Once youโ€™re enrolled, Fisher Investments Ireland automatically contributes 9% of your base pay. If you take your savings further by making your own contributions, Fisher Investments Ireland will match your personal contributions up to a maximum of 5%. Altogether, you can receive up to 14% in company contributions!

You can make Additional Voluntary Contributions (AVCs) over and above your regular contributions to increase your retirement account value. You may even be able to transfer benefits in from other pension plans, allowing you to manage all of your benefits in one place.

  • Paying into your pension plan will cost you a lot less than you might think. Your pension contributions are deducted from your pay before calculating any tax. This means that your gross taxable pay, on which tax is calculated, is reduced and so too is your tax bill!

  • You may be able to choose not to join the plan or to leave the plan at a later date. However, if you do so you will miss out on the contributions that Fisher Investments Ireland is willing to make on your behalf and on the tax incentives available for retirement savings. Without a pension, you will need to rely on your own savings and any State benefits you are able to claim when you retire. Ask yourself if this would be enough to provide the standard of living you would like.

  • To review and manage your retirement account, log in to the Zurich website. If you have any questions, please email aspire@zurich.com or call 01 799 2941. You can also download the user-friendly and convenient app for instant access to Zurich's secure, password-protected, online service so you can view information about your retirement account anytime, anywhere.

Fund Information

You can choose how to invest the money in your retirement account. There are three approaches you can take, depending on the level of involvement you want in making investment decisions:

  • Do It For Me
  • Help Me Do It
  • Leave Me To It

Do It For Me

If you donโ€™t feel comfortable making investment decisions, you can use the automated โ€œDo It For Meโ€ Strategy with the aim of growth when retirement is distant and reduced risk as retirement approaches.

Help Me Do It

If you want help making investment decisions, you can pick one of the โ€œHelp Me Do Itโ€ Portfolios, which are designed to suit a variety of savings objectives depending on how comfortable you are with risk and how close you are to retirement.

Leave Me To It

If you are comfortable making investment decisions, you may wish to adopt the โ€œLeave Me To Itโ€ approach. You choose how to mix and match your investment choices.

You can switch your choice of investment options as often as you wish. There will be a charge if you make more than four switches in a year. If you donโ€™t make an investment choice when you join the pension plan, your contributions will be invested in the planโ€™s default Aspire Retirement Strategy.

Learn More

Learn more about your pension investment options.

Retirement Income

When you retire, your retirement account can be used to support your financial needs, using one of the following benefit options (depending on your circumstances):

  1. A regular income for life
  2. An income for your dependants, payable after your death
  3. A retirement lump sum, payable tax-free up to revenue limits
  4. Taxable cash withdrawals

The Plan also offers benefits if you leave the Plan or in the event of your death.

Vesting

You are immediately 100% vested in your own contributions. All company matching contributions are subject to a two-year vesting schedule. This means if you were to leave Fisher Investments Ireland within two years of joining the pension scheme, you would be entitled to your own contributions. However, the company matching contributions will be refunded back to Fisher Investments Ireland.