As Ireland moves towards an auto-enrolment system of pension savings, the subject of pension charges will get increasing debate.

The purpose of this paper is to set out a perspective around the level of pension charges that apply in the pensions market in Ireland.

“Pensions” is a broad term – covering a wide range of products, which are subject to different regulations and indeed, are subject to different regulators. This paper focuses on occupational pension schemes, that is, pension schemes provided by employers to their staff. The rationale for this focus is that it represents the high majority of pension cashflows in Ireland. Also, where an individual pension saver enters into an individual pension savings contract, the decision to make that pension savings decision is generally accompanied by advice. In such circumstances, the cost of the advice can often be met through an increase in pension charges. A different analysis emerges where “pension charges” are compared with “pension charges including the cost of advice”. The focus on occupational pension schemes very largely avoids this distortion.

Insurance Ireland Pension Charges Report 2023

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