Pension in old company scheme - transfer out or not?

[180girl]

Hi all,
I have a pension that gathered from my previous jobs. It is now worth less than half of what it was worth 4 years ago. I blame lack of visibility for this. The company sent me an option statement almost 2 years after I left. My pension was locked into the scheme and I didn't have the foresight to move it out to a prsa when I left. So it dropped faster than Thelma & Louise.
I want to take charge and get a prsa. However if I secure a permanent job in this company then the old pension will be added into the new dc scheme.
I'm trying to figure out if I transfer it out to a PRSA, will I be able to ask my employer to contribute to it and will I get the same tax benefits as if I was with the company scheme? Will it have to come out of my pay slip or can I choose to do it just as AVCs.
I have really no desire to be with the company scheme as I want a scheme where I can check my performance online and therefore have more control over it.
However I don't want to lose out either. Am I missing something?
Thanks,
180girl

 

[LDFerguson]

I want to take charge and get a prsa. However if I secure a permanent job in this company then the old pension will be added into the new dc scheme.

This will only happen if you specifically instruct the trustee of your old pension scheme to transfer your fund into your new.

I'm trying to figure out if I transfer it out to a PRSA, will I be able to ask my employer to contribute to it and will I get the same tax benefits as if I was with the company scheme?

If your employer agrees to contribute to your PRSA and deduct your contributions from salary, then you'd get the same tax & PRSI relief as if you were part of the scheme, except that your employer's contribution to a PRSA would be subject to the Income Levy, while a similar contribution to an Occupational Pension Scheme would not.

There's no obligation on your employer to facilitate you in this way. Your employer might say that they will only facilitate their own scheme.

You should check the charges on your new employer's scheme and compare them with the charges on your proposed PRSA. Be aware also that being able to view your PRSA fund online is no guarantee that it will outperform your new employer's scheme.

Liam D. Ferguson

 

[180girl]

Thanks Liam. I didn't mention that the company is the same company I was with few years ago. The company line is that if I get a permanent job here then they will transfer this pension to their new scheme but if I have something set up myself then they will not push me into their pension. It's presently on their old scheme as I did nothing when I left. (feeling the costly pain of ignorance now).
I left in 2007 and only got leaving options calculated in 2009.. it definatlely would have shrunk since 2007 and I reckon I should have automatically gotten my leaving options within a month of leaving. Therefore I'm still hellbent on being in control now.

Can I have a prsa and a company pension active at the same time? Just in case they don't contribute to prsa?

Cheers for the advice.

 

[LDFerguson]

If you're part of a company scheme, you can choose to make additional contributions via your own AVC PRSA. This is a PRSA but specifically set up from the start as an AVC (Additional Voluntary Contribution) one.