The possibility to withdraw a ‘lump sum’ when you retire has been postponed for the second time. Minister of Social Affairs and Employment Carola Schouten has informed the House of Representatives that this option has been postponed ‘for now’ until 1 January 2024. This delay will affect you if you retire in the second half of 2023.

Are you retiring before 1 January 2024? Then you can't take out a 'lump sum'
The ‘lump sum’ option allows you to withdraw up to 10% of your pension as one amount when you retire. We explained more on how this works in an earlier newsletter. It is one of the agreements the cabinet and the social partners made in the Pension Agreement. The measure was initially planned to take effect on 1 January 2023, which later became 1 July 2023 and now won't happen at least before than 1 January 2024. The bill still needs to be approved by parliament. For the ‘lump sum’ measure to be available on 1 January 2024, it needs to be approved before the summer recess. That means there is a chance of even further delays.

Implementation delayed because pension funds and insurers don't have enough time to prepare
Withdrawing a lump sum comes with a set of conditions. It also affects your pension benefits and may affect your allowances and taxes. Pension funds therefore need to be able to inform their members adequately and have to make changes to the scheme in the personal portals. If introduced on 1 July 2023, the minister says there simply wouldn't be enough time. Postponement was hence unavoidable.

Are you retiring in 2023? Then you can use the existing options
Our pension scheme has several options to adjust your pension to your needs and wishes. One of the options is to retire earlier. You can also opt for higher benefits in the first years after retirement. Information on the many flexible possibilities can be found on our website. For more information on the Future Pensions Act, please visit the dedicated page on this topic.