When can you close your vested benefits account?
The Vested Benefits Act (FZG) and the Vested Benefits Ordinance (FZV) set out an exhaustive list of when you can withdraw your balance. If none of these reasons applies, the money stays in the account.
Reasons for a withdrawal
| Reason | Condition |
|---|---|
| Retirement | At the earliest five years before the reference ageDeferral only if you keep working (five years at most, transitional rule until 2029) |
| Leaving Switzerland | You leave Switzerland for goodA special rule applies to the EU and EFTA (see below) |
| Self-employment | You are self-employed as your main occupation and no longer compulsorily insured with a pension fundProof of self-employment required |
| Home ownership | Buying, building or paying down the mortgage on a home you live in yourselfPossible every five years, no minimum amount |
| Small balance | The balance is lower than your annual contribution to the pension fundThis means your own contribution per year |
| Full disability pension | You receive a full pension from disability insurance (IV)Provided the account does not include additional disability cover |
| Death | The insured person diesThe money goes to the beneficiaries in the order set out in law |
If you are married or in a registered partnership, every payout to you needs the written consent of your spouse or registered partner.
Source: FZG Art. 5, FZV Arts. 13 to 16, WEFV Art. 5
Unemployment, a career break or a trip around the world are not reasons for a withdrawal. If you join a pension fund again, the foundation must transfer your balance to it. That is a transfer, not a withdrawal, so no tax is due.
Moving abroad: a special rule for the EU and EFTA
If you move to a country outside the EU and EFTA, for example the USA, the UK or Thailand, you can withdraw your entire balance. A restriction applies to EU and EFTA states.
Self-employment
If you become self-employed as your main occupation and are no longer compulsorily insured with a pension fund, you can withdraw your balance. As proof, the foundation asks for confirmation of your self-employment, usually from the AHV compensation office. The application form says exactly what is needed.
Without a pension fund, you then have no 2nd pillar. In return, as a self-employed person you can pay more into pillar 3a. The rules are in our guide to pillar 3a for the self-employed.
Home ownership
For a home you live in yourself, you can make an early withdrawal: to buy or build it, to repay a mortgage or to buy shares in a housing cooperative. Holiday and second homes do not count. Unlike with a pension fund, there is no minimum amount of CHF 20'000 for vested benefits accounts. You can make an early withdrawal every five years.
When do you have to close your vested benefits account at the latest?
The retirement benefit becomes due when you reach the reference age (= statutory retirement age). It is 65. For women born between 1961 and 1963, a transitional age between 64 and 65 applies following the AHV reform.
If you keep working, you can defer the withdrawal by up to five years. You have to prove this to the foundation. This rule has applied since 1 January 2024 (Art. 16 FZV, German text). There is a transitional exception: if you reach the reference age between 2024 and 2029 and no longer work, you can still defer the withdrawal until 31 December 2029, but no more than five years beyond the reference age.
If you do not get in touch, the money stays with the foundation. It then reports it as a forgotten balance to the Central Office 2nd Pillar. How to find a forgotten balance is explained further down.
How to close your vested benefits account
- Check the reason. Look at the table above to see whether one of the reasons applies to you.
- Get the form. Every vested benefits foundation has its own forms, usually as a PDF on its website. There are often separate forms for a capital withdrawal, for home ownership and for a transfer to a pension fund.
- Enclose the documents. You usually need a copy of your ID and proof of the reason, for example the deregistration confirmation from your municipality if you move abroad. If you are married or in a registered partnership, your spouse or partner signs the consent. The form says whether the signature needs to be certified.
- With an investment solution, plan the sale. If your balance is held in a vested benefits investment, the foundation sells the securities before the payout, at the price on the day of sale. If you want to choose the timing yourself, you can switch to an interest-bearing account solution beforehand.
- Payout and tax. The foundation transfers the money to your account and reports the withdrawal to the tax authorities. The tax authority of your canton of residence bills you separately for the capital withdrawal tax.
How much tax does the withdrawal cost?
On pension money paid out, you pay a capital withdrawal tax (= one-off tax on the withdrawal). It is calculated separately from your other income, at a lower rate. How much it is depends on the amount, where you live and your marital status.
Evaluno calculated the tax for three amounts in six cantons using the Federal Tax Administration’s tax calculator. You can run the calculation for where you live there.
Capital withdrawal tax for single people
| Place of residence | CHF 100'000 | CHF 250'000 | CHF 500'000 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Zurich (ZH) | CHF 4'817 | CHF 14'601 | CHF 35'068 |
| Bern (BE) | CHF 4'628 | CHF 16'323 | CHF 41'259 |
| Lucerne (LU) | CHF 3'553 | CHF 13'007 | CHF 29'757 |
| Zug (ZG) | CHF 2'734 | CHF 11'253 | CHF 28'253 |
| St. Gallen (SG) | CHF 5'883 | CHF 17'266 | CHF 37'231 |
| Lausanne (VD) | CHF 4'589 | CHF 17'361 | CHF 41'947 |
Federal, cantonal and municipal tax combined. Residence in the cantonal capital, withdrawal at 65, without church tax and without other capital withdrawals in the same year.
Source: Tax calculator of the Federal Tax Administration (FTA), tax year 2026
Capital withdrawal tax for married couples
| Place of residence | CHF 100'000 | CHF 250'000 | CHF 500'000 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Zurich (ZH) | CHF 4'643 | CHF 14'376 | CHF 31'576 |
| Bern (BE) | CHF 3'801 | CHF 14'973 | CHF 37'660 |
| Lucerne (LU) | CHF 3'379 | CHF 12'782 | CHF 29'432 |
| Zug (ZG) | CHF 1'921 | CHF 10'222 | CHF 27'381 |
| St. Gallen (SG) | CHF 5'223 | CHF 15'826 | CHF 34'476 |
| Lausanne (VD) | CHF 3'644 | CHF 15'036 | CHF 37'881 |
Federal, cantonal and municipal tax combined. Residence in the cantonal capital, withdrawal at 65, without church tax and without other capital withdrawals in the same year.
Source: Tax calculator of the Federal Tax Administration (FTA), tax year 2026
For CHF 500'000, a single person pays CHF 28'253 in Zug and CHF 41'947 in Lausanne. The tax rate also rises with the amount. In Zurich it is 4.8 % for CHF 100'000 and 7.0 % for CHF 500'000.
The federal government and the cantons add together all capital withdrawals made in the same year, including those from the pension fund and pillar 3a. For married couples, both spouses’ withdrawals are usually combined.
Saving tax: staggering withdrawals
Because the rate rises with the amount, it pays to spread withdrawals over several years. An example using the Zurich figures for a single person: withdrawing CHF 500'000 in one year costs CHF 35'068. Withdrawing CHF 250'000 twice in two different years costs CHF 29'202 in total, so CHF 5'866 less.
- When you leave your pension fund, you can split your balance across a maximum of two vested benefits accounts. An existing account usually cannot be split later.
- Put withdrawals from the vested benefits account, the pension fund and pillar 3a in different years. You can withdraw your vested benefits as early as five years before the reference age.
- With several 3a accounts, you can also stagger your pillar 3a withdrawals.
Living abroad
If you no longer live in Switzerland when the money is paid out, the foundation deducts withholding tax. The amount depends on the canton where the foundation has its registered office. If Switzerland has a double taxation agreement with your new country of residence, you may be able to reclaim the withholding tax.
Forgotten vested benefits account? How to find your balance
If you no longer know which foundation holds your money, the Central Office 2nd Pillar at the BVG Guarantee Fund can help. The foundations report to it every year whose balances they hold.
On written request, the Central Office tells you which institutions reported a balance for you in December of the previous year. You submit the request using the Central Office’s online form. It does not give information about balances by phone. You then apply for the payout directly with the foundation.
Not withdrawing? How to invest your balance better
Even if you cannot withdraw your balance yet, you can switch to another vested benefits foundation or change how it is invested at any time. A switch is not a withdrawal, so no tax is due.
A vested benefits account pays you interest. With a vested benefits investment, you invest the money in securities. The return potential is higher over the long term, but the value fluctuates. The more years you have until retirement, the more time you have to ride out fluctuations.
Vested benefits accounts compared
- Vested benefits accountCaisse d’Epargne d’Aubonne0.50 %Interest rate per year
- Vested benefits accountHypo Vorarlberg (Schweiz) · Minimum deposit of CHF 100'0000.50 %Interest rate per year
- Vested benefits accountPensionClub · Exclusive interest rate with PensionClub membership (free).0.41 %Interest rate per year
- Vested benefits accountClientis Bank Oberuzwil0.30 %Interest rate per year
- Vested benefits accountClientis Bank Toggenburg0.30 %Interest rate per year
If you want to invest your balance, you will find every solution in the vested benefits investment comparison.
Frequently asked questions about closing a vested benefits account
For the retirement benefit, usually not: a vested benefits account is paid out in full. That is why it pays to split your balance across two accounts when you leave your pension fund. For home ownership, a partial withdrawal is also possible.
No. Unemployment is not a reason for a withdrawal. The money stays in the vested benefits account until you join a pension fund again or another reason applies.
Yes, but not as a withdrawal. If you join a new pension fund, the foundation must transfer your balance to it. Give the foundation the details of your new pension fund. No tax is due.
Only in part if you are covered by the compulsory German state pension insurance. You can withdraw the extra-mandatory part, while the mandatory part stays blocked. It remains in the vested benefits account until another reason applies, for example retirement.
Yes. If you are married or in a registered partnership, a payout is only possible with the written consent of your spouse or registered partner. If consent is refused without good reason, you can go to the civil court.
The law sets an order. First come your spouse or registered partner and children who would be entitled to an orphan’s pension. Next come people you supported substantially, or your life partner after at least five years of living together. Then the other children, parents and siblings, and finally the other legal heirs. In your contract with the foundation, you can specify the beneficiaries within this framework.
Send a written request to the Central Office 2nd Pillar at the BVG Guarantee Fund. It tells you which institutions have reported a balance for you. You then apply for the payout with the foundation itself.
Legal disclaimer
Evaluno does not provide investment, legal or tax advice and is no substitute for personal advice.
