Retirement income, planned for the decades ahead.
Independent advice from CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER® professionals on when you can stop working, how to structure your savings at retirement, and how much you can draw each year.
Sixty minutes, at our cost, at our Durbanville office or online.
Who we usually help.
Most retirement conversations start with one of these situations.
- You are within ten years of retiring and want to know whether your savings will carry you.
- You have left an employer and must decide what to do with the retirement fund, including a Section 14 transfer.
- You retired on a living annuity and are unsure whether your drawdown rate is sustainable.
- You own a business and your retirement depends partly on its sale.
The four decisions, in order.
Every retirement plan comes down to four decisions. We work through them with you, in writing, before anything is moved.
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When you can stop working
We test different retirement ages against your income need, savings and realistic returns, including what a few more working years would change.
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How much to take as cash
You may take up to a third of a pension fund or retirement annuity in cash. The first R550,000 of retirement lump sums is tax-free, reduced by any taxable cash you have already taken from retirement funds or received as severance pay.
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Which annuity to buy
The rest buys a life annuity (a guaranteed income for life), a living annuity (invested and flexible, but not guaranteed), or a combination of the two.
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How much to draw each year
A living annuity lets you draw between 2.5% and 17.5% of its value each year, and you can change the rate once a year. Drawing too much in the early years is the most common reason the income runs out.
The hardest job in our industry is not finding the right investment. It is sitting on it long enough to let it work.
Petri Beyers, CFP®, Director
Rules worth knowing.
The limits that shape most retirement decisions in South Africa, as SARS applies them in the 2026/27 tax year.
- Retirement annuities
- You can usually retire from a retirement annuity from age 55. Earlier access is allowed if you become disabled, once you have stopped being a South African tax resident for three unbroken years, or if your balance is R15,000 or less.
- Tax deduction on contributions
- Up to 27.5% of the greater of your remuneration or taxable income, to a maximum of R430,000 a year from 1 March 2026. Any excess carries over to the next tax year.
- Two-pot system
- Since 1 September 2024 you may withdraw from your savings pot once each tax year. The minimum is R2,000, and withdrawals are taxed at your marginal rate.
- Section 14 transfers
- Moving savings directly between approved retirement funds carries no tax. Most moves are allowed, but a retirement annuity cannot be transferred into an employer's fund.
- Smaller funds
- If a pension fund or retirement annuity is worth R360,000 or less when you retire, you may take all of it in cash (from 1 March 2026).
Common questions.
Can I retire from my retirement annuity before 55?
Only in limited cases: if you become disabled, once you have stopped being a South African tax resident for three unbroken years, or if your balance is R15,000 or less. You can also withdraw from your two-pot savings pot once each tax year.
Should I choose a living annuity or a life annuity?
It depends on your other income, your health and how much certainty you need. Many clients use both: a life annuity to cover essential costs and a living annuity for flexibility. We set out the trade-offs in writing before you decide.
How are you paid?
A transparent annual advice fee, agreed up front and disclosed in writing. Full fee schedules are shared in the first meeting, before any commitment is made.
Figures checked on 10 September 2026 against the SARS 2026/27 Budget Tax Guide, the SARS Budget 2026 FAQs and ASISA. Amounts that apply from 1 March 2026 were announced in the 2026 Budget and are applied by SARS; they remain subject to Parliament's legislative process.
Talk your retirement through with a CFP® professional.
Sixty minutes at our cost, at our Durbanville office or online. You leave knowing whether we can help, whether or not you become a client.
[email protected] · 021 976 0738
Unit 3, Kings Landing Building, 17 King Street, Durbanville, 7550
