Close to Retirement

Retirement Age

• The Fund Rules permit you to retire from age 55, or earlier with the consent of the Employer. The normal retirement age is 61 (or the age specified in your employment contract, if different). You may extend your retirement beyond this age, providing that both you and your Line Manager have agreed to extend the Contract of Employment on an annual basis. The maximum age until which a contract can be extended is 65.
• You may retire at any age due to ill health. This will only be considered if you do not qualify to receive a Disability Income Benefit from Old Mutual, and the Employer is satisfied that you meet the necessary requirements.
• You are encouraged to seek advice from a Financial Advisor prior to making any decisions to retire early, as an issue like affordability is a key factor to be taken into account. There are no penalties applicable on early retirement. However, the income you receive in retirement will be less if you retire early, because the pension (annuity) is expected to be paid over a longer life span. Please also bear in mind that if you retire early, your Member Account Balance will have less time to grow, so there will be less available from which a pension can then be purchased.
• Old Mutual SuperFund Deferred Retirement  provides you with the option to keep your retirement savings invested, protected and growing while you decide on a more appropriate time to access your retirement benefit. 

Options at Retirement

• Your Member Account Balance at retirement is used to purchase a pension (annuity). The monthly pension payment received from the annuity will be taxable, but as a monthly income and not as a lump sum. The maximum tax-free amount of any cash taken on retirement should be calculated by a financial adviser, after taking into account any other retirement savings you may have in preservation funds and/or retirement annuity funds.
• A pension (annuity) may be purchased from any registered assurer. You are able to select the guaranteed payment period and the minimum payment period as well as the level of pension you wish to provide for your partner. It is very important to obtain professional financial advice before purchasing an annuity, since some products cannot be changed once purchased.
• Annual pension increases (if applicable) will be determined by the pension (annuity) you have chosen to purchase at retirement.
• You may elect to take up to one-third of your Member Account Balance in cash, but at least two-thirds must be used to buy a pension of your choice, which will be paid to you each month. Any amount taken in cash is potentially subject to taxation and the amount taken will obviously reduce the amount of the remaining benefit from which you can then purchase a pension.
• You can find more information about two simple annuity options carefully selected by the Management Board of Old Mutual SuperFund: Solutions at Retirement  and for details about some of your options at retirement check out the SuperFund’s Retirement Guide.

Process to retire from the Fund

• When you retire, you will need to complete certain documentation in line with Old Mutual’s HR processes. Please see the relevant documentation on Oldmutual.me.
• To ensure that the first pension payment commences in the first month of retirement, please make sure that your documentation is received by the HR Service Centre before the 10th of the last month in which you are still employed at Old Mutual.

Ill-health Early Retirement

• If you do not qualify to receive a Disability Income Benefit from Old Mutual, and you believe you are totally incapable of performing your job as a result of a health condition, please engage with Old Mutual HR to discuss whether it is possible to apply for ill-health early retirement.

Assistance and information in the decision-making process

If you are planning to retire in the near future, there are several channels to help you with this critical decision.

• You can get free, no-obligation guidance about your options by speaking to your SuperFund Member Retirement Counsellor. You can get in touch by emailing SuperFundAnnuity@oldmutual.com, or leave a message to be contacted by calling Old Mutual Member Support Services on 0860 388 873.
• Solutions at Retirement: You can find more information about two simple annuity options carefully selected by the Management Board of Old Mutual SuperFund at oldmutual.co.za/SuperFundAnnuity.
• To find out the current value of your retirement fund savings in OMEGS, log in to Old Mutual Secure Services or check your Total Reward Statement on Workday.
• If you’re not yet registered for Secure Services, you can do so easily at oldmutual.co.za/selfservice.
• We encourage you to get comprehensive advice about your retirement decisions by speaking to your trusted financial adviser. If you don’t have a financial adviser, you can find one on the list of OMEGS-accredited Old Mutual financial advisers who have had training on the specifics of OMEGS and its benefits.

You might also want to consider the following information:

• When you leave, you are able to convert your life assurance benefit into a policy in your own name, without needing to go for any medical underwriting. This can be a very valuable benefit – so why not find out more about the Life Assurance Conversion Benefit.
• To help you understand whether you are on track to have sufficient savings for retirement, why not find out more about your Retirement Planning Status and how to Maximise your Benefits?

Have a look at the Targeted Pre-retiree Newsflashes on our communications page.