The 1,000-euro monthly pension?

An employee has to contribute at least 100 euros each month to a voluntary pension fund in order to receive a monthly pension worth 1,000 euros, both in the private and the public sector, according to a test conducted by private pension fund manager ING Fond de Pensii, presented yesterday in the seminar “Savings for a 1,000-euro pension. One year after the launch of voluntary pensions,” organised by ZIARUL FINANCIAR and ING. This test considered a 35-year period of contribution and a 5% annual yield for a voluntary pension fund. “The sums that employees are currently contributing will never add up to a pension of 1,000 euros per month. It is important for them to know that they are not covered just because they have joined a mandatory pension fund, they have to save in a voluntary pension fund as well,” said Radu Vasilescu, general manager of ING Fond de Pensii. Joining a voluntary pension fund is the only way to obtain a pension that accounts for 75 – 80% of a salary. Currently, over 4.15 million employees are clients of mandatory pension funds (2nd pillar) and just around 90,000 have chosen to contribute to a voluntary pension fund (3rd pillar) as well, but their number is estimated to reach 200,000 by the end of the year. Contributions to a voluntary pension fund cannot exceed 15% of the gross income and are fiscally deductible up to a maximum of 200 euros per year, both for the employee and for the employer.