PensFlex – the 1e collective foundation
The individual pension solution 1e for employees with an annual income of CHF 136'080.– or above (2026 figures).
Your benefits with PensFlex
Making you more attractive as an employer: Position yourself as a forward-thinking company and increase long-term retention of your management staff with flexible pension solutions.
High level of planning certainty: Individual pension solutions are free of redistribution and restructuring risk. The investment return flows entirely to your insured employees. Companies that have to implement the accounting requirements of IFRS or US GAAP can reduce the pension liabilities on their balance sheet under IAS 19 with a 1e pension solution.
No redistribution of your pension assets: Due to the redistribution in the second pillar, a tax-efficient management pension plan is an important criterion for more and more senior staff. We are more than happy to assist you in planning and choosing the right instruments.
Tax savings for your company: Build up reserves through employer contributions and reduce your tax burden in weaker economic periods. Meanwhile, paying more than 50% of pension contributions offers you additional tax benefits and increases employee loyalty.
How does PensFlex work?
With PensFlex you can set up your 1e pension plan in the way you choose, perfectly tailored to your basic pension fund. In addition, a pension solution split between different providers gives you the freedom required to build the pension you want as well as the security that your pension assets in the PensFlex 1e pension solution ultimately belong to you.
Freedom of choice thanks to splitting
We are living in times of huge redistribution in occupational pensions, which the system was not originally designed for. Incidentally, individual pension models do not permit these unfair redistributions. In the case of pension solutions with a free choice of investment strategy – known as 1e pension plans – the extra-mandatory part of the occupational pension is managed in a separate 1e pension foundation.
«Don’t put all your eggs in one basket.»
Harry M. Markowitz, American economist and Nobel Prize winner (1927 - 2023)
Attractive risk premiums
Pure saving and investment plans are not permitted in occupational pensions. The insurance principle means that certain defined risks are also covered. In order to fulfil the insurance principle, a minimum of 4% of the total contributions must be spent on risk benefits. At PensFlex, death and disability benefits are 100% reinsured with Mobiliar. As the PensFlex collective foundation has had a very positive claims experience since its foundation in 2000, members benefit from extremely attractive risk premiums.
PensFlex gives your company more planning certainty and thus has a financial advantage.
No redistributions
There is no redistribution between mandatory and extra-mandatory pension assets in PensFlex pension solutions. These cross-subsidies, which run counter to the original intention of the system and are engaged in by many pension funds which have the same conversion rate for mandatory and extra-mandatory pension assets, do not exist with us. Your savings contributions are your own capital and remain so.
No risk of a pension deficit
The PensFlex 1e pension solution does not provide any capital or interest rate guarantees for members and thus avoids the resultant financial risk for your company. Each individual member thus receives 100% of the return from their selected investment strategy. Your pension fund cannot be in deficit. As a result, there is no risk for you as an employer of having to inject additional funds.
No bloating of the balance sheet
For companies that comply with international accounting standards (IFRS or US GAAP), 1e solutions can reduce their pension fund liabilities on the balance sheet under IAS 19. By reducing your liabilities, you create a leaner balance sheet and boost the return on equity.
Employer contribution reserves
With PensFlex, your company can build up employer contribution reserves. This is beneficial by allowing you to balance out the company’s profit in good and bad times and optimise the tax burden in the long term by creating reserves. You can then fall back on these employer contribution reserves during more difficult times.
In most cantons, the tax authorities accept the accumulation of an employer contribution reserve, usually up to a maximum of five times the annual employer contribution.
Possible benefits at a glance:
- You reduce your taxable profit.
- You determine the investment strategy for these reserves.
- Regular employer contributions for staff remain affordable during more difficult times.
Restriction for the self-employed:
The self-employed can only build up the contribution reserves described above for their employees. The employer’s share for their own occupational pension must be excluded.
Employer contributions of more than half
With a «Bel Etage» pension solution, the employer often pays the majority of the pension contribution. Increasing the employer’s portion of managers’ pension contributions to more than half instead of a salary increase creates genuine tax benefits for employers and employees.
Potential benefits at a glance:
- Higher employer contribution reserves for the company
- Lower social security contributions for employer and employee
- Lower taxable income for employees
- Recruitment and retention benefit for managers and skilled workers
Investment strategies with BVV/OPP 2-compliant strategy profiles
For larger pension assets, PensFlex also offers investment strategies via funds or individual securities. If you retire or leave Switzerland, you can usually transfer the securities from the retirement custodian account to your private account free of charge. The investment solutions are implemented by a PensFlex partner bank within a discretionary asset management mandate. The following banks are part of our select partner network:
- Reichmuth & Co.
- Bank Vontobel Ltd
- Banque Cantonale Vaudoise
- Bordier & Cie
- Edmond de Rothschild (Suisse) SA
- Rothschild & Co
- LGT Bank (Switzerland) AG
- Lombard Odier
- Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd.
- Zähringer Privatbank AG
With PensFlex, you can choose between investment strategies with a discretionary asset management mandate or strategies with BVV/OPP 2-compliant strategy profiles. Together with our banking partners, we would be happy to help you find the solution that fits you best.
Investment strategies with a discretionary asset management mandate
PensFlex offers you numerous BVV/OPP 2-compliant mixed strategy profiles from investment foundations and investment funds depending on your personal risk capacity and risk appetite. You benefit from institutional fee levels for all your investment solutions. This brings tangible cost advantages, which positively affects the value of your assets.
PensFlex allows every member to choose the investment strategy for their pension assets themselves. However, the law limits the number of strategies that can be offered. Your employees can choose from a maximum of ten different investment strategies, at least one of which must be low risk.
The individual advice PensExpert gives our management staff about their personal pension provision is something we value very highly.
Zeno Böhm
CEO, Burkhalter Group
Collaboration was efficient, transparent and solution-oriented. Challenges were addressed immediately and delivered reliably. The personal contact ensured straightforward and accessible support. I am happy to recommend this process.
Leonardo U. F.
Former PensFlex customer
Further forms can also be found on PensPortal (employers) or myPensPortal (pension fund members).
FAQs on PensFlex
The PensFlex collective foundation, also known as the 1e solution, is suitable for companies who want to offer their managers and skilled workers an individual and customised pension solution.
The PensFlex collective foundation is always managed in combination with a basic pension scheme.
It therefore always comprises at least two occupational benefits institutions and a member’s pension assets are therefore held by at least two such institutions.
Article 1e BVV 2/OPP 2 (Ordinance on Occupational Retirement, Survivors’ and Disability Pension Plans) stipulates that only salary components in excess of CHF 136'080.– (2026 figures) may be insured.
The pension plan, concluded between the company and the PensFlex collective foundation, governs all the details of who is a member of the PensFlex solution.
The membership criteria can be selected individually by the affiliated company and customised to their preferences in the scheme rules.
Every affiliated company can independently choose the risks to be covered in the pension plan.
For example, if a company does not want a surviving spouse’s/partner’s pension to be covered, this can be arranged accordingly.
The selected investment strategy can be changed at any time. Depending on risk tolerance and risk capacity, there may be a desire for a different investment strategy after a certain period of time.
If there is a purchase shortfall, this shortfall can be financed with private funds. The personal purchase shortfall is listed on the annual insurance certificate.
The PensFlex collective foundation offers affiliated companies access to selected partner banks. Each company decides independently and individually which partner bank it wants to manage the pension assets.
The timing of implementation can be selected individually. As it usually needs to be coordinated with the basic pension plan, many companies decide to implement it as of 1 January or 1 July.
