Choosing when to retire
We assume that you'll retire at your state pension age, so this is the age we use to decide what your normal pension age in the Fund will be too. The only time this won't be the case is if you have a different retirement age in your contract of employment. You can take your benefits earlier or later than the Fund's normal pension age if you like, though.
Retiring early
The Fund's Trust Deed and Rules set out the age when members can start taking their benefits, but overriding pensions tax legislation sets out the earliest age when members can generally take their benefits without incurring any penal tax charges. This is known as the normal minimum pension age and it is currently set at age 55.
However, the government is raising the normal minimum pension age to 57 in April 2028. From this date, you won't be able to take your pension benefits before age 57 unless you're retiring because of ill health, or because you have something called a protected pension age.
Protected pension age of 50
If you joined the Fund — or another pension scheme that merged into the Fund apart from Purina — before 6 April 2006, you'll have a protected pension age of 50. This means the normal minimum pension age doesn't apply to the benefits you've built up in the Fund and you can take them from age 50. To do this, you'd have to leave Nestlé's employment and the Fund, and then retire at the same time.
Protected pension age of 55
If you joined the Fund on or after 6 April 2006 but before 4 November 2021, you may have a protected pension age of 55. This means the normal minimum pension age doesn't apply to the benefits you've built up in the Fund. Having a protected pension age of 55 will depend on a number of factors, including what type of membership you have and whether you're an active or deferred member at the time you take early retirement.
No protected pension age
If you joined the Fund on or after 4 November 2021, you won't have a protected pension age. So, from April 2028, the earliest you'll be able to take your Fund benefits will be age 57, unless you're retiring because of ill health. Until April 2028, though, you'll still be able to take your Fund benefits at age 55.
At the moment, we're waiting for more details to emerge around the change to normal minimum pension age before the increase to age 57 is implemented in April 2028. Because of this, it may not yet be possible to confirm what the impact might be on members who could have a protected pension age of 55. We'll let you know more as soon as more information becomes available.
What happens to my Nestlé pension if I retire early?
Retiring early from DC Core or DC Start
If you decide to retire early and you use your DC Start or DC Core account to buy an annuity, the pension you receive will depend on the value of your account when you retire, the type of annuity you choose, and the cost of buying a pension at that time.
Retiring late
Retiring late from DC Core or DC Start
If you decide to retire late and you use your DC Start or DC Core account to buy an annuity, the pension you receive will also depend on the value of your account when you retire, the type of annuity you choose, and the cost of buying a pension at that time.
If you opt out of the Fund at your normal pension age:
- you stop making contributions,
- your DC account will stay invested,
- you should regularly check that your investment options and target retirement age still fit with your current plans,
- your death-in-service benefits will reduce to a cash lump sum of 2 x your pensionable earnings, and
- when you stop working for Nestlé, you can take your benefits — see What will you receive
If you carry on contributing to the Fund after you reach your normal pension age:
- your DC account will stay invested,
- you can carry on making contributions, until you reach age 75,
- you should regularly check that your investment options and target retirement age still fit with your current plans,
- your death-in-service benefits will carry on as normal, and
- when you stop working for Nestlé, you can take your benefits — see What will you receive
Flexible retirement
If Nestlé agrees, you can take all or part of your Nestlé pension at any time from age 55 (under current legislation, although this is rising to age 57 in April 2028 — find out more in Retiring early above) and carry on working for Nestlé. This is known as flexible retirement and is available to members of DB Core or DB CorePlus.
Taking flexible retirement from DC Core or DC Start
Flexible retirement is not available to members of DC Core or DC Start.
To find out more about the age you can retire from, contact Nestle Pensions