Birla Sun Life Pension Plans

Birla Sun Life Insurance Company Limited (BSLI) is a joint venture between the Aditya Birla Group and Sun Life Financial Inc., one of the leading international financial services company from Canada. Birla Sun Life Insurance has contributed to the growth and development of the life insurance industry and is currently one of the leading life insurance companies in the country.  Their customer base comprises of over two million policy holders. The Company offers a complete range of plans comprising protection solutions, children's future solutions, wealth with protection solutions, health and wellness solutions, retirement solutions and savings with protection solutions. Its distribution network is in over 500 cities, 560 branches, around 85,000 empaneled advisors and over 140 partnerships with corporate agents, brokers and banks.It’s been a decade that the company has contributed significantly to the growth and development of the life insurance industry of our country. They have also pioneered in the launch of Unit Linked Life Insurance plans. Their vision is to be a leader and role model in integrated financial services. They value Integrity, commitment, Passion, Seamlessness and Speed.

Birla Sun Life Pension Plans

Birla Sun Life Company offers three types of pension plan to its customers. The plans help the individuals to provide for their retirement and also come with added features. Let us take a look at the different types of plans offered by the company in details.

Birla Sun Life Insurance Empower Pension Plan

A unit linked pension plan which promises market linked returns for a better corpus at the end of the tenure. The features are as follows:

• The premium under the plan is supposed to be paid for the entire duration
• The customer has to choose between three risk appetites of aggressive, moderate and conservative at the time of buying the plan. After that, the premium net of charges is invested in two available funds namely Maximizer Guaranteed and Income Advantage Guaranteed in a pre-determined proportion under the Smart Option of investment. The feature manages the investment as per the risk profile chosen and as the plan approaches maturity, a greater proportion of fund value is transferred to the fund which suits the risk profile chosen by the customer.
• Guaranteed Additions calculated as percentage of average fund value over the past year are added from the 6^th policy year. The rate of additions is 0.25% from the 6^th to the 10^th year and 0.35% from 11^th year onwards till the vesting date.
• Moreover, from the 11^th year, 102.5% of premium paid is allocated to the fund.
• On vesting, higher of the fund value or Guaranteed Vesting Benefit is paid subject to a minimum of 101% of aggregate premiums paid till vesting date
• The Guaranteed Vesting Benefit ranges from 101% - 140% of total premiums paid depending in the vesting age and the risk profile chosen.
• The vesting benefit can be utilized by the policyholder in multiple ways. He can withdraw 1/3^rdof the accumulated fund in cashand receive annuity from 2/3^rd, receive pension from the total fund, buy a Single Premium Deferred Annuity or delay the vesting age if his age is below 55 years
• On death, the fund value or 105% of premiums paid or total premiums compounded at 0.5% - 3% depending on the risk profile chosen, whichever is the highest, is paid to the nominee entirely in cash or in annuity payouts

Eligibility Details

Birla Sun Life Insurance Empower Pension Plan SP

A similar version of the earlier plan where premium is paid only once at then inception of the plan under the Single Premium payment option. The other features of the plan are as follows:

• The customer has to choose between three risk appetites of aggressive, moderate and conservative at the time of buying the plan. After that, the premium net of charges is invested in two available funds namely Maximizer Guaranteed and Income Advantage Guaranteed in a pre-determined proportion under the Smart Option of investment. The feature manages the investment as per the risk profile chosen and as the plan approaches maturity, a greater proportion of the fund value is transferred to the fund which suits the risk profile chosen by the customer.
• Guaranteed Additions calculated as a percentage of the average fund value over the past year are added from the 6^th policy year. The rate of additions is 0.25% from the 6^th to the 10^th year and 0.35% from the 11^th year onwards till the vesting date.
• On vesting, higher of the available fund value or Guaranteed Vesting Benefit is paid subject to a minimum of 101% of all premiums paid till the date of vesting.
• The Guaranteed Vesting Benefit ranges from 103% - 160% of total premiums paid depending in the vesting age and the risk profile chosen.
• The vesting benefit can be utilized by the policyholder in multiple ways. He can commute 1/3^rd part of the corpus and avail annuity from the remaining part, avail a pension from the entire corpus, use the proceeds to buy a Single Premium Deferred Annuity plan from the company or can even defer the vesting age if he is aged below 55 years.
• On death of the insured, higher of the fund value or 105% of all premiums paid or total premiums compounded at 0.5% - 3% depending on the risk profile chosen, is payable to the nominee who can withdraw the entire amount or use the amount to avail annuity from the company
• Income tax benefit on the premium paid as per Section 80CCC and on the commuted part as per Section 10(10A) of the Income Tax Act. Death benefit is exempt under Section 10(10D).

Eligibility Details

Birla Sun Life Insurance Immediate Annuity Plan

The features of the plan include:

• Being an immediate annuity plan type, annuity payments start instantly
• The customer has 5 options of annuity payouts to choose from:
• Life annuity at uniform rate
• Lifetime Annuity and Return of 100% of Purchase Price
• Annuity guaranteed for 5 or 10 or 15 or 20 years and after that payable for the entire life
• Life Annuity which increases at a simple rate of 3% p.a.
• Joint Life Last Survivor with annuity paid to the first annuitant and after his death, to his spouse.

Eligibility Details

Applying for a Pension Plan from the company:

Online

The company offers specific plans which are available online only. The customer only needs to log into the company’s website, choose the required plan, choose the coverage and provide the details. The premium will be determined using the filled details. The customer then needs to pay the premium online through credit card, debit card or net banking facilities and the policy will be issued

Intermediaries

Plans which are not available online can be purchased from agents, brokers, banks, etc. where the intermediaries help with the application process.

Applying For Pension Plans through PolicyBazaar

• On the PolicyBazaar homepage, click on Retirement under the Personal tab.
• Click New Quotes to compare and choose from top insurance providers.
• Fill your date of birth (DOB), whether you are a smoker/non-smoker, and the payout amount. On the basis of your payout amount, you will get an estimate of your premium. Next click Continue.
• Fill in your name, email address, city, country code, and mobile number. Click Continue.
• You will be taken to the Life Insurance quotes page where you will see life insurance quotes of more than 10 insurers. Next, choose the plan as per payment schedule – One Time Payout and Monthly Payout Plans.
• After reviewing and comparing each life insurance quote, click the premium amount to buy the desired plan.
• You will see a pop-up on the screen which will give you an overview of the chosen plan like premium, plan features, exclusions, additional riders, etc. Click Proceed.
• This will take you to the insurer’s website. You will have to fill in the necessary details to buy the plan.

What are the different types of annuity plans?

There are mainly two kinds of annuity – immediate annuity or deferred annuity. In an immediate annuity plan, the annuity phase begins as soon as the purchase price is paid. In the deferred annuity plans (this is the more common type), the payment begins after many years, when the policyholder is retired and left without a regular income from his employer.

What are the sub categories of annuity plans?

The annuity plans have some sub-categories as well. They are:

• Life annuity – Here, the annuitant receives the payments till the last day of his life.
• Guaranteed period annuity – Here, the annuitant receives the annuity for a fixed number of years, say 10, 15 or 20 years. If he dies within this term, the beneficiary continues to receive the payments.
• Joint life/survivor annuity – In such cases, two people, like a husband and a wife are the joint annuitants. So even if one person dies, the other person continues to receive the annuity till the time he or she survives. At times, the rate of the payments may be reduced after the death of one annuitant, but this depends on the terms and conditions of the policy.
• Life annuity with return of purchase price – In such a plan, the purchase price is returned to the nominee if the annuitant dies within the policy period.
• Increasing annuity – In this kind of a plan, the terms may be similar to any of the above mentioned variants, but the payment would increase at a pre-decided rate, keeping in mind the rates of inflation.

Does an annuity plan provide life cover?

No, an annuity plan doesn’t provide life cover, though these products are sold by life insurance companies in India. The only way a nominee may benefit is if the annuitant dies without getting the purchase price back, the nominee will get the amount back, either as a lump sum or over a period of time.

When should an Annuity Plan be taken?

An annuity plan should be taken as early as possible. The person should not wait for his retirement to start and then be left without any financial backing. To prevent this, an annuity plan should be taken well in advance so that by the time the retirement takes place and the regular salary stops, the annuity will kick in and provide the policyholder with a substitute salary to pay for his expenses. Since an annuity plan helps you build up your own retirement fund, it would be helpful to you build the fund over a number of years. This will ensure that your yearly premiums won't be too high and you won't be stressed financially. You also have the option of paying a single premium. So if at any time, you receive a lump sum amount of money, you can invest it in your annuity plan immediately.

I have 20 years left for my retirement. Should I take an annuity plan now?

If you have about 20 years left till the time you retire, it would be a good time to plan for the future. At this point in your career, you must be financially well settled and so paying the premiums for an annuity plan would not be very taxing. And since you would be able to pay for 20 years, you will have a very healthy and substantial fund by the time you retire. This fund will not only substitute your income, it will also ensure you stay financially independent throughout your life.

I am 55 years old and recently opted for a VRS. Should I take an annuity plan now?

If you received a cash bonus at the time of opting for the VRS, it would be an intelligent idea to invest a part of that money in an immediate annuity plan. Opt for a limited premium plan where you can pay the premium, also called the purchase price, at one go. Then, opt for the annuity to begin immediately as after your VRS, your monthly income must have stopped. This will help you maintain your lifestyle and you also won't have to depend on your children for your expenses.

I am a retired school teacher with a pension. Should I buy an annuity plan?

If you are already retired and only depend on a pension amount, you need to evaluate your expenses and see whether you can afford an annuity plan or not. An annuity plan should ideally be taken much before you retire. You can even opt for a single premium immediate annuity if you have enough money to afford it, after your retirement. But here, since you are already retired and depend on your pension to pay your bills and expenses, you may not be able to buy an annuity plan at such a time.

Birla Sun Life Pension Plans - FAQs