Savings insurance 3a/3b
Saving for the future with security
FAQ
Services
Downloads
Why choose Premium Life?
Premium Life is interesting for you if you:
- want to save towards a specific goal with regular payments,
- want to benefit from a guaranteed minimum benefit and interesting potential returns,
- want a standardized, clever investment mechanism,
- want to save sustainably with shares, and at the same time protect your loved ones.
How can Premium Life be used?
- With Premium life, you can achieve specific goals thanks to regular payments, for example, for home ownership or travel. If you become disabled, Zurich will pay your premium - so you can still achieve your savings goals. This represents a huge advantage over the offerings from banks.
- Premium Life is ideal for paying off a mortgage directly or indirectly.
- You can choose whether you want to take out Premium Life as tied retirement solution (pillar 3a) or an unrestricted pension plan (pillar 3b). This allows you can optimize or save taxes.
- If you include a disability pension and/or a lump-sum death benefit, you can put together a complete pension package via Premium Life.
Can a disability pension also be included after the contract has been concluded?
You also have the option later on of adjusting your insurance cover and, for example, including or excluding a disability pension or adjusting the benefits. However, for extended insurance coverage, you will have to fill in the health questionnaire again.
How does the premium break work?
If you have been insured for at least three (pillar 3a) or five years (pillar 3b), and your contract assets are at least CHF 5,000, you can take a premium break of one to three years. This can make sense in the event of, for example, maternity leave, a stay abroad or unemployment. During this time, Zurich will cover the running costs from your contract assets. This does however reduce the guaranteed survival benefits. Your insurance coverage in the event of death or disability remains at the same amount
How flexible is Premium life during the contract period?
Premium Life is very flexible, unlike many retirement provision solutions:
- After three (pillar 3a) or five (pillar 3b) years, you can take a premium break - with full insurance coverage.
- You benefit from a coverage extension guarantee and can increase your premium at various times without a new health check: in the event of marriage, birth of a child, purchase of a home or every 3 years.
- If you become unemployed or no longer work, you can switch from pillar 3a to pillar 3b at any time - at no additional cost.
- With a 3a policy, you have the option of making an additional payment once a year. This is interesting, among other things, for self-employed people without a pension fund who only know how high their income is at the end of the year.
- Up to three months before expiration, you can extend the term of your 3a insurance until the regular OASI age - and even up to five years beyond. Requirement: You must provide evidence of earnings from employment.
Building up retirement provision in the 3rd pillar - what are the arguments in favor of an insurance solution?
The Premium Life life savings insurance offers you three crucial advantages:
- Thanks to the premium waiver in case of disability, you can achieve your savings goal whatever happens.
- You can safeguard your loved ones and yourself against misfortune - by means of a disability pension or capital in the event of death.
- The agreed annual premium for the pension insurance provides for discipline in saving, to ensure you actually achieve your goals.
- And if you wish to change something in the meantime, you can simply adapt the premium or the benefits of the insurance flexibly.
Security and returns – isn’t that contradictory?
Often, investors have to choose between these two goals. With Premium Life, you can have both: 95 percent of your deposited savings premiums are safe. For the remaining five percent, we offer you further attractive potential for returns, making saving for retirement provision worth your while.
What would happen if Zurich were to go bankrupt?
95 percent of the premiums from your savings insurance are invested in the tied assets of Zurich Life Insurance Company Ltd. Zurich is subject to supervision by the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority and, in the event of bankruptcy, the tied assets serve primarily to settle the claims of the insured persons. Whatever happens, this money will be paid out to you. But you needn’t worry: Zurich is financially very solid. Bankruptcy is extremely unlikely now or in the future.
How does the leverage certificate work?
The leverage certificate is a structured financial product that allows for threefold participation in the value development of the Swiss Market Index (SMI). The returns generated by the certificate are therefore three times as great as the returns on the SMI, in the case of both positive and negative returns. The issuer of the certificate is Credit Suisse AG, Zurich. The price fluctuations (volatility) of the SMI is continually monitored. In case of significant volatility, the leverage is reduced and with it the investment risk.
I am young and unattached – is Premium Life savings insurance worthwhile for me?
Of course! With a moderate annual premium you remain disciplined – so you can enjoy your life today and still save for tomorrow. After all, the premium waiver in case of disability means you can be sure that you will actually reach your savings goal with the pension insurance. And with disability protection, you as a young person benefit from particularly favorable premiums.
Can I also save on tax with the Premium Life savings insurance?
If you take out Premium Life as part of a pillar 3a restricted pension plan, you can offset the premiums against your income on your tax return. This means you save a considerable sum in tax, year by year. If your premium is below the maximum permissible amount for pillar 3a, you can top it up to the maximum amount at any time and thus further optimize your tax obligations.
Invest cleverly
Five per cent of your savings premiums and the surpluses from your insurance policy are invested in the Zurich Carbon Neutral World Equity Fund, a climate-neutral investment option.
Benefit from free maturity management
If you wish, towards the end of the term of your life insurance, Zurich will continually shift your assets in the Zurich Carbon Neutral World Equity Fund to funds with lower equity ratio and thus a lower risk – all free of charge.
Remain flexible at all times
Round the world trip? Having a baby? Buying a home? Regardless of the direction your life takes, Premium Life insurance can adapt flexibly to you, for example, with a break from paying premiums or increased benefits.
Gain considerable tax benefits
As part of the restricted pension plan known as pillar 3a, you can offset the premiums from your life insurance against your income in your tax return and thus make considerable savings on tax year after year.
Other customers ask
Why choose Premium Life?
Premium Life is interesting for you if you:
- want to save towards a specific goal with regular payments,
- want to benefit from a guaranteed minimum benefit and interesting potential returns,
- want a standardized, clever investment mechanism,
- want to save sustainably with shares, and at the same time protect your loved ones.
How can Premium Life be used?
- With Premium life, you can achieve specific goals thanks to regular payments, for example, for home ownership or travel. If you become disabled, Zurich will pay your premium - so you can still achieve your savings goals. This represents a huge advantage over the offerings from banks.
- Premium Life is ideal for paying off a mortgage directly or indirectly.
- You can choose whether you want to take out Premium Life as tied retirement solution (pillar 3a) or an unrestricted pension plan (pillar 3b). This allows you can optimize or save taxes.
- If you include a disability pension and/or a lump-sum death benefit, you can put together a complete pension package via Premium Life.
Can a disability pension also be included after the contract has been concluded?
You also have the option later on of adjusting your insurance cover and, for example, including or excluding a disability pension or adjusting the benefits. However, for extended insurance coverage, you will have to fill in the health questionnaire again.
How does the premium break work?
If you have been insured for at least three (pillar 3a) or five years (pillar 3b), and your contract assets are at least CHF 5,000, you can take a premium break of one to three years. This can make sense in the event of, for example, maternity leave, a stay abroad or unemployment. During this time, Zurich will cover the running costs from your contract assets. This does however reduce the guaranteed survival benefits. Your insurance coverage in the event of death or disability remains at the same amount
How flexible is Premium life during the contract period?
Premium Life is very flexible, unlike many retirement provision solutions:
- After three (pillar 3a) or five (pillar 3b) years, you can take a premium break - with full insurance coverage.
- You benefit from a coverage extension guarantee and can increase your premium at various times without a new health check: in the event of marriage, birth of a child, purchase of a home or every 3 years.
- If you become unemployed or no longer work, you can switch from pillar 3a to pillar 3b at any time - at no additional cost.
- With a 3a policy, you have the option of making an additional payment once a year. This is interesting, among other things, for self-employed people without a pension fund who only know how high their income is at the end of the year.
- Up to three months before expiration, you can extend the term of your 3a insurance until the regular OASI age - and even up to five years beyond. Requirement: You must provide evidence of earnings from employment.
Building up retirement provision in the 3rd pillar - what are the arguments in favor of an insurance solution?
The Premium Life life savings insurance offers you three crucial advantages:
- Thanks to the premium waiver in case of disability, you can achieve your savings goal whatever happens.
- You can safeguard your loved ones and yourself against misfortune - by means of a disability pension or capital in the event of death.
- The agreed annual premium for the pension insurance provides for discipline in saving, to ensure you actually achieve your goals.
- And if you wish to change something in the meantime, you can simply adapt the premium or the benefits of the insurance flexibly.
Security and returns – isn’t that contradictory?
Often, investors have to choose between these two goals. With Premium Life, you can have both: 95 percent of your deposited savings premiums are safe. For the remaining five percent, we offer you further attractive potential for returns, making saving for retirement provision worth your while.
What would happen if Zurich were to go bankrupt?
95 percent of the premiums from your savings insurance are invested in the tied assets of Zurich Life Insurance Company Ltd. Zurich is subject to supervision by the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority and, in the event of bankruptcy, the tied assets serve primarily to settle the claims of the insured persons. Whatever happens, this money will be paid out to you. But you needn’t worry: Zurich is financially very solid. Bankruptcy is extremely unlikely now or in the future.
How does the leverage certificate work?
The leverage certificate is a structured financial product that allows for threefold participation in the value development of the Swiss Market Index (SMI). The returns generated by the certificate are therefore three times as great as the returns on the SMI, in the case of both positive and negative returns. The issuer of the certificate is Credit Suisse AG, Zurich. The price fluctuations (volatility) of the SMI is continually monitored. In case of significant volatility, the leverage is reduced and with it the investment risk.
I am young and unattached – is Premium Life savings insurance worthwhile for me?
Of course! With a moderate annual premium you remain disciplined – so you can enjoy your life today and still save for tomorrow. After all, the premium waiver in case of disability means you can be sure that you will actually reach your savings goal with the pension insurance. And with disability protection, you as a young person benefit from particularly favorable premiums.
Can I also save on tax with the Premium Life savings insurance?
If you take out Premium Life as part of a pillar 3a restricted pension plan, you can offset the premiums against your income on your tax return. This means you save a considerable sum in tax, year by year. If your premium is below the maximum permissible amount for pillar 3a, you can top it up to the maximum amount at any time and thus further optimize your tax obligations.
Sleep soundly thanks to secure investments
We invest your money securely: 95 percent of the savings premiums in your life insurance are invested in the guaranteed assets. The savings premium is the part of the total premium after deduction of costs and the risk premium. Your entire savings assets are secured via the tied assets of Zurich.
Combine security and potential for returns
With regular payments, you can build up your savings capital. A guaranteed benefit gives you the necessary security, while a shrewd investment concept offers you additional potential for returns.
