Preserve your total benefit

You can preserve your entire benefit in the CSS for payment at a later date. Taking this option can sometimes result in a higher pension benefit when you eventually claim your benefit.

If you have reached minimum retiring age (usually age 55), you can claim your deferred benefit* the day after you preserve it, if you wish. However, any lump sum payments of your member and productivity components would be subject to any SIS restrictions.

* Your deferred benefit will generally be a standard CPI-indexed pension, with your member and productivity (if any) components taken as a once off lump sum, a non-indexed pension, or a combination of lump sum and non-indexed pension.

Lump sum (or rollover) with no pension

You can elect to take your entire benefit* as a lump sum.

However, If you are under age 55, the amount of the lump sum that you can take as cash is limited to the lesser of your total member component or your SIS Upper Limit.

If you are over age 55 but less than age 60 and you have not retired from the workforce, you are restricted to a cash lump sum of your SIS Upper Limit.

In both these circumstances, you would have to rollover the remainder of your total lump sum to a rollover fund.

You can also roll over your entire lump sum to a rollover fund if you wish.

* equal to 3.5 times the total of your basic contributions plus interest, plus any supplementary contributions and interest, and the productivity component.

CPI-indexed pension plus a non-indexed pension

Generally, this option is only available if you are aged 55 years or more.

You can take a CPI-indexed pension, and purchase a non-indexed pension with your member and productivity components. The amount of your non-indexed pension cannot exceed a maximum value, which is determined according to your age and final salary. Any excess contributions will be paid as a lump sum.

CPI-indexed pension plus a lump sum and a refund of your productivity benefit

This option is only available if you are aged 31 years or more.

You can take a CPI-indexed pension plus a non-indexed pension purchased with your member component. In addition you will receive a lump sum or rollover of your productivity payment.

If you are under age 55, or between 55 and 60 and have not left the workforce, your productivity component must be paid into a rollover fund.

CPI-indexed pension with a lump sum

This option is only available if you are aged 31 years or more.

You can take a CPI-indexed pension plus a lump sum or rollover of your member and productivity components.

If you are under age 55, or between 55 and 60 and have not left the workforce, your productivity component must be paid into a rollover institution.

In addition, if you are under age 55, or between 55 and 60 and have not left the workforce, the amount of your member component that you can take as a cash lump sum is restricted to your SIS Upper Limit. Any balance must be paid to a rollover fund.

Postpone all or part of your benefit.

This option is only available if you are aged 55 or more and you do not intend to retire from the workforce.

You can choose to:

• postpone the receipt of your CPI-indexed pension and productivity component and take as much of your member component as SIS allows immediately as a lump sum (the balance will be paid to a rollover
  fund); or
• postpone the receipt of your CPI-indexed pension and the productivity component and take your member component immediately as a non-indexed pension; or
• postpone your total benefit.

You can claim your postponed benefit at any time provided you have left the workforce. You cannot however, postpone your benefits beyond your 65th birthday.

Your benefit will be paid with effect from the date that you provide the us with written advice that you have left the workforce.