Fund your future
Build a retirement plan that works for your lifestyle and live the life you want to live.
Begin your Pension Journey- The Pension Pot Series
- Two Truths, One Lie: Pensions Edition
- 3 steps to a better retirement
- What’s your pension type?
- What a pension meeting looks like
We aim to show you how to plan forward to achieve your best retirement life and improve your longer term financial wellbeing. Our industry experts will help you learn how pensions work so you can better understand your options, the very attractive tax reliefs, and why it’s important to know how your pension is invested. Gain the knowledge now to make smart decisions to help fund your future and achieve a better retirement lifestyle.
View Pension Learning Supports Topics: View our Beginner’s level webinar from 2022, to learn about the pension basics. Our panel explain why it’s important to have a pension, the tax benefits available to you and what are the key considerations to factor in for different life stages. Find out how to get your pension started and how to keep it on track. Host: Bernard Walsh,
Head of Pensions and Investments, Bank of Ireland Guest Speakers: Yvonne Donnellan,
Senior Financial Advisor, Bank of Ireland and
George Nolan,
Head of Retirement & Technical Insights, Bank of Ireland Life
Register Now for this Free Series Wednesday, 4 October 2023 @10am For people who have ideally watched our pre-recorded Beginners Level webinar above or who are already familiar with the pension basics. Topics: Answering all the big questions on changes happening in the pensions landscape at the moment. No matter where you are on your pension journey, this webinar is suitable for everyone from employees, the self employed and company directors. You’ve made a start but are you doing enough? Let our experts guide you. Host: Bernard Walsh,
Head of Pensions and Investments, Bank of Ireland Guest Speakers: Ger Durkan,
Senior Financial Advisor, Bank of Ireland and
George Nolan,
Head of Retirement & Technical Insights, Bank of Ireland Life Wednesday, 18 October 2023 @10am This webinar is suitable for anyone that is already contributing to their pension but wants to build up their pot. Topics: Find out how to maximise your pension pot value, the benefits of saving a little more, what are Additional Voluntary Contributions (AVCs) and how can they help? Host: Bernard Walsh,
Head of Pensions and Investments, Bank of Ireland Guest Speakers: Evelyn Maloney,
Corporate Pension Consultant, Bank of Ireland Wednesday, 1 November 2023 @10am This webinar is suitable for anyone that is on the glidepath to retirement – typically 3-5 years from retiring. Topics: For many, starting to consider their plan for drawing down their pension happens too late when retirement is imminent. Ideally you should start thinking of your retirement options 3-5 years ahead of your retirement date. Find out how to maximise your pension pot value as you near retirement, what are the key decisions for planning the drawdown of your pension and when is the ideal time to start contemplating your options? Host: Bernard Walsh,
Head of Pensions and Investments, Bank of Ireland Guest Speakers: Helena Dorrigan,
Senior Financial Advisor, Bank of Ireland Wednesday, 15 November 2023 @10am This webinar is suitable for anyone who has taken a break from employment and highlights some of the challenges that this brings to your pension planning. Topics: For many women, work and family life can be a balancing act. Time out of work to care for a young children or a family member can be costly, if it keeps you from working and earning a salary, a proportion of which would normally be put aside for your pension. We’ll address some of the practical considerations that women need to think about when funding their future. Host: Bernard Walsh,
Head of Pensions and Investments, Bank of Ireland Guest Speakers: Lisa O'Flynn,
Senior Financial Advisor, Bank of IrelandWelcome to the Pension Pot Webinar Series 2023
Webinar 1: Fund Your Future – Setting Yourself Up For Success (watchback)
Webinar 2 Live: Fund Your Future – Making The Most Of Your Pension
Webinar 3 Live: Fund Your Future – Maximise Your Pension Pot with AVCs
Webinar 4 Live: Fund Your Future – Coming Close To Retirement – What Are My Options?
Webinar 5 Live: Fund Your Future – Women and Pensions
Two Truths, One Lie: Pensions Edition
Pensions Misconceptions You Didn’t Know You Had

1. Did you know?
Our Pensions survey* showed that more men hold a personal pension than women – 49% of men have a private pension versus 37% of women. And that men have a better knowledge of how pensions work and the tax benefits attaching to pension saving. 50% of men say they understand how pensions work versus 38% of women. 45% of men say they understand the tax benefits of pension saving versus 29% of women.
However, it’s true to say:
- The qualifying age for all State pensions in Ireland is 66. The State Pension (Contributory) is paid to people from the age of 66 who have enough (PRSI) contributions. The State Pension (Contributory) is not means tested. You can have other income and still get it. The State Pension (Non-Contributory) is a payment for people aged 66 and over who do not qualify for a State Pension (Contributory) (SPC). The State Pension (Non-Contributory) is taxable, but if it is your only income you are unlikely to pay tax on it.
- Currently, you can qualify for up to a maximum of €200,000 to be taken as a tax free pension lump sum. This is a total lifetime limit even if lump sums are taken at different times and from different pension arrangements. The amount of lump sum you can take out of a pension arrangement is limited, with different rules applying depending on the type of arrangement you have.
You can find more about building a retirement plan that works for you here.
*Bank of Ireland/RedC National Pensions Survey, 7 – 14 July 2022

2. Surprising Stats
Our research survey* tells us that for people who already have a pension, only 15% are confident they are contributing enough to their pension, while 67% said they are worried they are not saving enough into it. Only 25% are confident that their pension will provide them with a comfortable retirement. This tells us that for most people, there is a huge uncertainty surrounding what they’ll get when they retire.
And it’s true to say:
Less than 50% of people understand how pensions work as only 44% of our research survey* respondents say they understand how pensions work. When people don’t understand how pensions work or realise the implications of not having a pension, they generally tend to do nothing about it and therefore they can’t look forward to their future retirement with confidence or optimism, when they eventually stop regular work.
The Irish tax system gives you income tax relief on pension saving. So if you’re a higher rate tax payer, paying tax at 40%, for every €1 you save into your pension fund, it only costs you 60c. And if you’re a lower rate tax payer at 20%, for every €1 you save into a pension fund, it’ll cost you 80c. These income tax reliefs make pension saving a very attractive saving option for your longer term financial wellbeing.
To learn more about pensions, you can watch back our Pension Pot webinar series that ran during September and October here. Or if you’d like to discuss your pension needs with an advisor, you can arrange a call back here.
*Bank of Ireland/RedC National Pensions Survey, 7 – 14 July 2022
Knowing what you have is a great starting point. It’s good to review your existing savings and any existing pension policies you may have contributed to over the years – especially if you have changed jobs during that time. Knowing what you want from life when you do retire is key. Consider what kind of lifestyle you see for yourself. Do you plan to travel every year? Enjoy big occasions and celebrations and spoil the grandkids with trips and family adventures to the zoo or the panto? You may need an income for up to 30 years once you retire so setting realistic expectations of the lifestyle you want and knowing how much you will need to have saved for your retirement years is vital. Getting expert advice is critical to having a good understanding of what you need to do in order to have a comfortable retirement. Many think the whole area of pensions is too complicated. Our advisors have a wealth of experience and they can explain and guide you through the process to get a plan in place that’s right for you. Don’t put it off until tomorrow Many people think that putting a retirement plan in place is too complicated. But pensions are simply long term savings that help you to pay for the things you want whenever you stop working so it makes sense to organise yours now. Most pensions are very flexible. You can usually stop and start when you need to, and increase or decrease your contributions at any time. The earlier you start the better, even if you can only put in less than you would like to. The longer you save the more chance you have of achieving your retirement goals. Our advisors can make understanding pensions easy. They’re available to meet with you face to face, or via virtual meeting or chat with you over the phone to talk through your pension needs. 3 simple steps to a better retirement
I’m Patricia, I’m 42 and I’m married to my husband Lorcan and we have two children, aged 9 and 6. We’re living in Kilkenny on my family farm, recently passed to me by my father. We live in the farmhouse, keeping me close to the farm at all times but close enough to the local village and schools for the kids. My family have been part of this community for generations so we’re well connected in the community. The kids are heavily involved with the local GAA and other sports and Lorcan is a landscaper so a lot of his work is local too. Farming is in my blood so I couldn’t see myself doing anything else. As always, it has its ups and downs but thankfully we’re having a few good years now with barley and wheat. Lorcan’s work has also become more stable than recent years gone by. The re-zoning of land close to the village for residential building has really given his landscaping business a boost. What plans do you have around retirement? What’s your pension type?
Patricia, self-employed farmer who needs flexibility, starting a pension
Saoirse, Company Director, enhancing her pension
I’m Saoirse, I’m 55 and I live in Dublin. I was recently given the opportunity to become a Director of the business I’m working in so that’s been a big change. I wouldn’t have thought I’d ever become a Director of a business but I took the opportunity from some of the inheritance my parents left me. Mum and Dad would have wanted me to be secure and set up for life and I think that is exactly what buying into the business has given me.
Since my parents passed away, I’ve thought a lot about my finances and it dawned on me, it’s up to me to look after myself into the future. Having met with my financial advisor a couple of times recently, I feel there’s a weight lifted off my shoulders, having put a plan in place for critical illness and health insurance – I needed to make sure I’ll be ok financially if something bad were to happen to me. And I know it’s time to focus on putting a plan in place for the type of lifestyle I want when I retire.
I’m a good saver, I don’t have any real debts and with my parents’ inheritance, I’ve a decent bit of savings for any rainy days that may come my way. But, I do know how to look after myself. I love going on lovely city trips and vacations throughout the year and myself and my friends have a really good time so I don’t want that to stop when I finally retire.
What decisions do you need to make around planning for the future?


Brian, an employee, approaching retirement, making the most of his pension
I’m Brian and I’m 63. I’ve worked in hospitality for the last 36 years as a hotel manager. I started out at the bottom and worked my way up to where I am today so I think it’s safe to say I’ve seen it all.
Covid has been a blessing and a curse for me. It was awful to see the hotel shut for such a long stretch and it’s taking a lot to get it back up and running but on a personal level, having to slow down and not go to work every day was a good insight to what retirement might be like.
What plans have you around retirement?
My wife Aileen has retired already. She was the secretary at our local secondary school for a number of years once our own children grew up and flew the nest so she’s already receiving a modest pension along with the State Pension.
We see ourselves living a modest lifestyle in retirement. We love playing golf but a lot of our time is spent with our family, our kids and our grandkids. Our girls live locally but our son lives in Canada with his family so we don’t get to see them often. We’d like to do a bit more travel once we retire, go to visit Stephen and the family and then we’d love to go to the Ryder Cup in the States in 2025.
I never really gave my pension or what I was saving into it much consideration until recently but having worked for nearly the last forty years, I can now see the benefit of both myself and my employer putting in small regular contributions and having it build up over time. When I got a promotion about ten years ago, a friend at the time advised me to do some AVCs. This has really bumped up the overall pot. What money I’ll have to spend every week will look very different because of the little extra I put in over time.
I’m ready for retirement, so we’re planning on making the most of saving into my pension for the next few years while I’m working and then to enjoy life once I retire. I’m hoping to retire in about two years so the money we put away won’t be locked away for long.
What decisions do Brian & Aileen need to make?
Baz & Nancy’s Pension Prep

Pensions can be overwhelming, confusing and even complex. But while pensions can seem overly complicated, they are actually a rich tapestry of multi-layered elements, coming together to make one thing. In fact, they’re a lot like a cake.
10 Reasons to invest in a Pension

Whatever your age or circumstances, it’s always a good idea to plan for your retirement.
Talking Pensions Magazine

Our latest Talking Pensions Magazine focuses on the 3 steps to a better retirement and much more.
Putting your retirement plan in place will give you great peace of mind, no matter what age you are. Ready to take the next step?
The personas portrayed in this document are fictitious and no identification with actual persons is intended or should be inferred.
Revenue limits, terms and conditions apply. Tax relief is not automatically granted, you must apply to and satisfy Revenue requirements.
The customers portrayed in this publication are fictitious and no identification with actual persons is intended or should be inferred.
Life assurance and pensions products are provided by New Ireland Assurance Company plc., trading as Bank of Ireland Life. The Company may hold units in any funds mentioned on its own account. New Ireland Assurance Company plc., trading as Bank of Ireland Life is regulated by the Central Bank of Ireland. Member of Bank of Ireland Group.
Advice on Bank of Ireland Life products is provided by Bank of Ireland, trading as Bank of Ireland Insurance & Investments. Bank of Ireland trading as Bank of Ireland Insurance & Investments is regulated by the Central Bank of Ireland.
Bank of Ireland is a tied agent of New Ireland Assurance Company plc trading as Bank of Ireland Life for life assurance and pensions business. Member of Bank of Ireland Group.