The European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA) submitted its technical input requested by the European Commission to support the development of supplementary pensions in the context of its Savings and Investments Union strategy. In its response, EIOPA puts forward a set of proposals to adapt the EU regulatory and supervisory frameworks for supplementary pensions – the IORP II Directive and the PEPP Regulation, emphasising the need for value for money, an auto-enrolment system and enhanced supervision. EIOPA’s proposals cater for the financial needs of European citizens and the EU economy alike, and would help to expand pension coverage, lower costs, build public trust and ensure robust oversight.
In an ageing European society, viable and scalable supplementary pensions are urgently needed to complement statutory pensions and address the pension gaps. Asset-backed supplementary pensions are essential for achieving future pension adequacy, offering scale, stronger oversight from sponsors, as well as members’ involvement in the decision-making process. Personal pensions complement statutory and occupational pensions and provide flexibility to savers by not being tied to a specific employer. EIOPA’s Eurobarometer shows that 48% of consumers who own a personal pension product feel financially confident about retirement, compared to 36% without one, indicating the impact they have in boosting retirement confidence.
In this context, EIOPA welcomes the European Commission’s initiative to develop the European supplementary pensions system and is pleased to respond to its technical questionnaire with a set of proposals that seek to address the European pension gaps and improve retirement outcomes, while enhancing the supplementary pension framework and supervision system.
On the review of the IORP II Directive, EIOPA’s proposals aim to:
- Address implementation challenges of IORP II Directive’s more stringent prudential provisions in some Member States to ensure adequate and consistent protection of members and beneficiaries across the EU;
- Introduce a more risk-based approach in the IORP II Directive’s Prudent Person Rule to foster investment opportunities in alternative assets;
- Clarify the scope and some definitions in the IORP II Directive for a fair access to pension savings and to further unlock the benefits of long-term savings;
- Strengthen the supervision with a clear regulatory framework that sets out powers, operational and financial independence, and an enhanced supervisory review process that is integrated with the risk assessment framework.
On the review of the PEPP Regulation, EIOPA’s proposals aim to:
- Create a clear and visible EU-wide pension label, by renaming the basic PEPP with a simpler and recognisable name such as “EuroPension” to raise awareness and facilitate pension retail investments, thus closing pension gaps;
- Simplify EuroPension’s features to achieve better consumer outcomes. EIOPA proposes to change the current 1% cost cap to a system that assesses and weighs costs based on benefits and returns, to introduce simplified advice, remove mandatory sub-accounts requirements, and make the EuroPension a truly cross-border product;
- Introduce changes to the regulatory framework to achieve scale, reduce costs and improve returns;
- Ensure that the registration and supervision framework is simplified and able to adequately monitor the EuroPension label.
Proposals regarding auto-enrolment and pension transparency tools:
- Use occupational pensions in the scope of the IORP II Directive or PEPP offered in the workplace as auto-enrolment default options to improve pension coverage and scale;
- Consider horizontal disclosure to develop national pension tracking systems also linked with the European Pension Tracking System, and introduce minimum disclosure requirements in the IORP II Directive and PEPP regulation that address information gaps in the decumulation phase. These measures can offer citizens transparent information in both the accumulation and decumulation phases and encourages them to play a more active role in their retirement planning.
“With an ageing population in the EU, we need to take bold actions, at scale, to strengthen retirement security and reduce pension gaps. This is why we have made targeted proposals to the European Commission to reform the current occupational and personal pensions framework in the EU. By automatically enrolling employees into IORPs or a EuroPension, by adapting the EU pension regulation to foster smarter pension investments and by creating an ‘EuroPension’ label, we can unlock long-term savings and ensure fair pension access for all. When doing this well, we will not only help EU citizens live in dignity at all age, but also contribute to achieving the objectives of the Savings and Investments Union (SIU)”, concluded EIOPA’s Chairperson Petra Hielkema.
Read the technical input and annexes
Background
EIOPA’s response builds on previous work, including EIOPA’s 2023 Advice on the IORP II review, the 2024 staff paper on PEPP, as well as the European Court of Auditors (ECA) special report on supplementary pensions. Moreover, it takes into account the objectives set out in the European Commission’s Savings and Investments Union (SIU) initiative.