Pensioners
CLICK on the Titles to read full description. To view page printable version of this page CLICK here
WHEN DO I RETIRE?
You will normally retire on the first day of the month following your 65th birthday or at a date as prescribed by the conditions of service of your Institution.
MAY I RETIRE EARLIER?
If your employer agrees to early retirement, you may retire at any age between 55 and 60. From age 60 to 65 you may voluntarily retire early without the consent of your employer.
MAY I RETIRE LATER THAN AGE 65?
This depends entirely on your employer. You may, if your employer agrees, continue working once you have reached the compulsory retirement age and retire at a later date, however, you will lose the death and disability cover. You have to retire as an active (contributing) member of the Fund at age 70.
WHAT DO I RECEIVE WHEN I RETIRE?
When you retire you will become entitled to all the money that you and your employer paid into your “Retirement Savings Account” plus the interest which has been earned on this money over the years. This is known as your share of the Fund. Should you have any outstanding housing loan, this will be deducted from your share.
At this point you may decide to arrange your own pension with an insurance company of your choice in which case we will pay your share to them. Your benefits will then be determined by the conditions agreed between you and the insurer and the Fund has no further involvement in your retirement.
You may also decide to retire within the Universities Retirement Fund. If you remain in the Fund as a pensioner you have the following options:
a. You can convert your full share into a monthly pension
b. You can take up to one-third of your share in cash. In most cases you will receive this cash amount tax-free (subject to income tax limits prevailing at the time) and the balance of your share will be invested by the Fund to provide you with a monthly pension. Obviously the monthly pension will be smaller in this case since it is based on the smaller amount of two-thirds of your share.
The monthly pension will be paid to you for the rest of your life. This means that even if you outlive your pension share in the Fund, you will still receive a monthly pension. The amount that you receive every month will depend on how much money there is in your share when you actually retire. Remember that if you retire early, your monthly pension will be smaller since less money will have been paid into your share account and it will have had less time to grow.
Your pension will normally increase every year depending on the Fund’s investment performance.
Benefits that terminate at retirement
a. Disability benefit – Since you are not employed by one of the participating employers any longer, you cannot be declared unfit for work.
b. Death in service benefit – As you are not “in service” any more, your beneficiaries will not be entitled to the 5 times annual salary plus share lump sum benefit.
c. Housing loan benefit – At retirement your share in the Fund is converted into a pension. You are by law not allowed to borrow from your pension share.
Benefits that remain after retirement
Medical Aid
Depending on the conditions of service between you and your employer, it may be possible to remain on the medical aid scheme after retirement.
You must specifically select this benefit at retirement. You cannot re-join the medical aid scheme after retirement. It must be a continuation of membership at the day of retirement.
From your monthly pension you must still pay your portion of the monthly premium towards the medical aid scheme. Your employer will continue to pay their subsidy towards the medical aid scheme on the same basis as before retirement.
Please note that this is an arrangement between you and your employer. The Fund has no involvement in this arrangement. All we can do is to subtract your portion of the monthly premium from your pension for those members who retired within the Fund. Members who arranged their own pension with an insurance company will be personally responsible for their share of the medical aid monthly premium.
Funeral benefit
The funeral benefit will remain in force after retirement until you reach the age of 75 years. Unfortunately the insurance company is not willing to exceed this age.
This benefit is free and does not require additional contributions from members or pensioners.
Benefit levels
| COVER(N$) | |
|---|---|
| Member/Pensioner | 50 000.00 |
| Spouse | 50 000.00 |
| Children (14-21 years) | 50 000.00 |
| Children (6-13 years) | 40 000.00 |
| Children (0-5 years - including Stillborn) | 10 000.00 |
Please note should you pass away before the age of 75, the claim for your funeral will still be paid but after that the policy expires. In other words after your death your dependants (spouse and minor children) will not be insured any more.
Claims procedures
The underwriter committed themselves to settle claims within 48 hours after receipt of ALL documentation. The documentation required will be the following:
| DEATH OF MAIN MEMBER | DEATH OF SPOUSE | DEATH OF CHILDREN |
|---|---|---|
| Certified copies of: | Certified copies of: | Certified copies of: |
| ID document | Main member's ID | Main member's ID |
| Death Certificate | ID of deceased | ID of deceased |
| Completed Claim Form | Death Certificate | Death Certificate |
| Completed Claim Form | Completed Claim Form | |
| Marriage Certificate | Full Birth Certificate |
Please obtain the claim forms from the Human Resources Office.
WHAT HAPPENS IF I DIE AFTER I HAVE RETIRED?
If you retire in the Fund your pension amount is guaranteed for a period of 5 years. If you pass away during the first five years of your retirement, your full pension will continue to be paid to your dependants (spouse) for the remainder of the 5 years.
After 5 years the following benefits will be paid to your dependants:
1. Your surviving spouse will receive a life-long monthly pension equal to 75% of the pension that you were receiving before your death; PLUS
2. Your children who are unmarried and younger than 18 years will share a pension, based on your full pension: One child will get 7.5% of your pension
Two children will share 15% of your pension
Three or more children will share 22.5% of your pension.
If there is no surviving spouse and the only dependants are your children, the children’s pensions above will be doubled.
These pensions will normally increase each year depending on the Fund’s investment performance.
Remember that a spouse as per definition is a husband or wife to whom you were married at the date of retirement. Should you marry after retirement, your new partner will not be a qualifying spouse.
IF I DIE AND LEAVE NO DEPENDANTS
In this case, ALL the money left in your share, if any, may be paid out to the beneficiaries that you have nominated, or your estate, subject to the provisions of the Pension Funds Act.
This means that you will never leave any money in the Fund. ALL of it will be paid out.
It is therefore very important that you complete a new beneficiary nomination form at retirement.
It is very important to note that monthly pension is only paid until 28 February every year.
To ensure that your pension payments are not interrupted you must complete a CERTIFICATE OF EXISTANCE around December/January each year. This document must be certified by a Commissioner of Oaths i.e. at a police station, and the original must be sent to our office. Electronic copies do not qualify.
We normally include a copy of this form in your payslip envelope for November the year before.