Alto Cash Balance: the group insurance policy with collective capitalisation for SMEs and large companies

Alto Cash Balance is a solution for companies seeking an easy-to-manage supplementary pension plan with no administrative hassles, and with the prospect of a healthy return thanks to the Branche 231 approach.

Is Alto Cash Balance right for your company?

  • Do you want to offer your employees a tax-efficient alternative to a pay rise?
  • Do you understand the importance of optional cover for death and incapacity for work?
  • As an employer, do you want use Branche 231 to create a financial buffer against the less profitable years?

Then make sure to learn what Alto Cash Balance can offer you.

Benefits

Less stress thanks to collective management

Alto cash balance is a cash balance Plan type of group insurance policy. That means the employer defines:

  • the premium budget
  • the return that to be achieved

Your company has no administrative hassles at all. This is because under collective management – also known as collective capitalisation – the financing of the employer's contributions to the pension plan takes place in a collective fund. If the return is higher than expected then this is used for the benefit of the fund. That creates a buffer for periods with lower market returns.

The opportunity of higher returns via Branche 231

As an employer, you can choose between 36 different Branche 231 funds that range from defensive to dynamic, including 4 profile funds that are managed internally by NN. That makes it easy to decide for yourself how much risk you want to take. Without needing to take responsibility for actively managing your investment, as you can leave that in the safe hands of our experts.

Simple administration

Our standardised approach means that you don't have to closely monitor your group insurance policies. Administration is kept to a minimum, and you can monitor everything online via MyWorkPlace.

Optional cover: collective insurance death and collective disability insurance 

The types of cover are:

  • In the event of death:
    • a fixed amount for the next of kin
    • an additional fixed amount for the next of kin in the event of death due to an accident.
  • In the event of incapacity for work with the brand-new NN Wellbeing Services*:
    • payment of an annuity benefit in the event of work disability caused by illness or an accident, both at home and at work.
    • payment of the premiums by NN, with guarantees and pension accrual rights maintained.
    •  
    • an extra amount in the event of full and permanent work disability as the result of an accident.
    •  
    • extra support for the whole family (if they live at the same address) for tackling and preventing mental health problems, via NN Wellbeing Services.

We offer you a choice between two innovative coverages that make no distinction between physical and mental conditions:

Extended cover: the maximum benefit duration in case of damage is up to the moment when one takes the statutory pension and up to 67 years at the latest.

Essential cover: the benefit duration for each claim case separately is a maximum of 2 years, starting from the end date of the own risk period. If the disability is related to a previous disability, the maximum benefit duration of 2 years is reduced by the duration in which we have already intervened as a result of that previous disability.

* NN Wellbeing Services are accessed through the group insurance cover, which provides for an annuity benefit in the event of work disability. This means you cannot use these services without this insurance cover. You benefit from these services through an external, independent and professional partner: Workplace Options (WPO). Depending on the situation of your employees, Workplace Options will outline a suitable path for them to take. This means that the offering may change or be partially discontinued

Support when buying real estate

Is one of your employees planning a real estate project? With this group insurance policy, you can give him the chance to finance his plans more cheaply thanks to a down payment2 on his contract, which comes with some extremely attractive terms. This arrangement will not result in any paperwork for you, as NN will arrange everything directly with the employee involved.

Premiums and taxation

Premiums

The premiums are deductible as business expenses within the limits of the 80% rule3.

Taxes and social security contributions on premiums

  • for pension, death and incapacity for work: 4.4%
  • social security contributions on pension and death: 8.86% (on employer contributions)
  • Wijninckx contribution (if applicable)4

Management fees 

  • Entry fees on the life and death premiums of maximum 1,5% (see technical sheet for more details)
  • For the life reserve vie (Branch 23): depends on investment fund and annual premium branche 23 (see technical sheet for more details)

Contributions and tax on payouts

  • RIZIV/INAMI contributions on the total amount paid out (excluding incapacity for work): 3.55%
  • Solidarity contribution: 0% to 2% of the total amount (excluding incapacity for work)

Tax on capital/interest:

dependent on various factors5.

Set up a Cafetaria Plan for your employees

Would you like to offer your employees greater freedom and allow them to make à-la-carte decisions? Then you should definitely choose the Cafetaria Plan of Alto Cash Balance. Is there a need for greater death coverage or for additional insurance against incapacity for work? Your employees choose the formula that best matches their current age and circumstances, within the range of options you define.

Are you interested? A financial adviser will help you get started

If you have any questions as an employer, then you can get in touch with one of our independent brokers.

Or send an email to EBsolutions@nn.be. An NN Employee Benefits Consultant will then quickly get in touch to offer you advice and support.

Essential documents

Before you sign your insurance policy, it is essential to go through the following information.

The Branch 23 version of this product is not suitable for US Persons. With regard to the Branch 23 version, NN Belgium Ltd. does not act under the supervision of the American regulator SEC. Click here for more information.

 

Technische fiche Alto Cash Balance
Fiche technique Alto Cash Balance

Help with new plans and improving existing plans

A custom solution based on analysis

We carefully analyse your company's situation, before offering you a custom solution based on the often complex reality of your business.

Support during roll-out

You can rely on personal support as you introduce your plan. We will also explain the added value of the group insurance policy to your staff – after all, your investment deserves to be properly appreciated.

Are you already an Alto Cash Balance user? Then we will provide a non-binding in-depth analysis.

Find out how we can help you launch your pension plans and carry out interim evaluations

Alto Bonus: additional pension savings for your top employees

Through Alto Bonus, you can link your employees' pension premiums to their performance.

My Workplace: make managing your policy a great experience

Using My Workplace, you can quickly and easily make adjustments to your insurance policies.

The reception structure: investment opportunities for pension reserves established with former employers

The reception structure is designed to hold group insurance policies from former employers.

Your unique life deserves a personal approach. That is why we are happy to help you find an independent broker in your area

Footnotes

  1. Branche 23: In Branche 23 investments, neither the capital nor the return are guaranteed. Employers are required by law to guarantee a minimum return on employer and employee contributions to be used to build a supplementary pension. The return from a Branche 23 investment fund depends on how the unit value of the fund changes. There is no entitlement to profit sharing. Your profile is determined in the needs and risk profile analysis together with your broker.
  2. A down payment or registered pledge is possible provided that this relates to the improvement, renovation or restoration of a real estate property located in the European Economic Area that will generate taxable income for the policyholder.
  3. This rule states that mandatory and supplementary pensions, expressed as annual pension payments, may not be higher than 80% of the final normal annual gross salary. This does not take individually agreed contracts into account. All details are available here.
  4. Wijninckx contribution: A special NSSO contribution of 3% that employers are required to pay on supplementary pension premiums or contributions that exceed the level of EUR 30,000 per year (excluding tax and subject to indexation).
  5. Supplementary pension disbursement: Apart from some legal exceptions, the supplementary pension payment must be paid out at the time when the employee actually retires.