An entrepreneur two years from retirement. An undeniable professional track record, personal affairs in complete disarray. He no longer knows exactly how many bank accounts he has opened. He thinks he has a Pillar 3a—but cannot remember which bank it is with. He owns an apartment in Spain, bought fifteen years ago, whose documents he has lost. He has no will and he is unsure whether it would be advisable to make a lifetime gift of his real estate assets to his heirs.
This profile is not the exception. It is the rule.
Pre-retirement is one of the few moments in life when you are forced to take stock of your entire asset situation. Better to prepare for it—rather than wait for a crisis to force your hand.
What you absolutely need to know about your own assets
Before any talk of optimisation or strategy, there is a more basic question: do you know exactly what you have?
Bank accounts, investments, and pension pillars
How many bank accounts do you currently hold? Across how many institutions? Are there dormant accounts you forgot to close? What is the balance in your pension fund? Do you still have assets in a vested benefits account? Do you have one or more Pillar 3a accounts—and with which bank or insurance company?
These questions seem elementary. They do not always have an immediate answer.
Real estate in Switzerland and abroad
Owning property abroad means the legal and tax rules of that country apply—particularly in matters of succession and wealth transfer. An apartment bought in France, Italy, or Spain does not pass to heirs in the same way as a property located in Switzerland. On top of that, double taxation treaties and bilateral agreements between your country of residence and the country where the property is located may apply, and their implications deserve careful analysis to understand all the tax and succession consequences in full.
Insurance policies, contracts, and active mandates
Life insurance, disability insurance, accident cover—have the terms and named beneficiaries been updated since the policy was taken out? A contract signed twenty years ago with your former spouse as beneficiary can hold an unpleasant surprise for your family.
What happens to Pillar 3a in a succession—a point most people miss
Pillar 3a is often the surprise of a succession. Unlike ordinary assets, it does not follow standard inheritance rules: it is paid directly to the beneficiaries named in the pension contract, within the legal order set by Swiss pension law. The surviving spouse or registered partner takes priority. In their absence, certain adjustments are possible within the legally permitted circle of beneficiaries. If you have never updated the named beneficiaries, the capital may go to people who no longer reflect your wishes. In all cases, the statutory inheritance shares defined by the Swiss Civil Code must be taken into account.
Checklist: the 10 documents to locate before retirement
These are the priority documents to gather and update before you retire. The list is not exhaustive—but covering these ten points gets you most of the way there.
- Individual AVS account statement
Why? To verify that all your contribution years are correctly recorded. A gap not corrected before retirement cannot be rectified afterwards.
- Pension fund certificate (LPP/BVG)
Why? To check your balance, the options for pension or lump sum, and the deadline by which you must notify your decision.
- Statements for all Pillar 3a accounts, including named beneficiaries
Why? To ensure the named beneficiaries are current and consistent with your wishes today.
- Title deeds for all real estate (Switzerland and abroad)
Why? To identify each property, its ownership structure, and the applicable succession and transfer rules.
- Life and disability insurance contracts, with named beneficiaries
Why? To check that beneficiaries and insured amounts still match your current family situation.
- Will or succession agreement, if one exists
Why? To confirm it is still current, that it accurately reflects your wishes today, and that it can be easily located and acted on at the time of your death. A will drafted fifteen years ago may no longer match your family or asset situation.
- Mandate in case of incapacity (a legal instrument allowing a person to appoint someone to manage their personal and financial affairs if they become incapable of doing so).
Why? To designate the person who will manage your affairs if you lose mental capacity. Without one, a court appoints a guardian (curator under Swiss law)—who may not be the person you would have chosen.
- Advance healthcare directives
Why? To set out your wishes regarding medical treatment if you are no longer able to express them, and to designate a healthcare representative. A separate document from the mandate in case of incapacity, but complementary.
- Full list of bank accounts, investments, and outstanding loans
Why? To give your close ones—or your advisor—a consolidated view of your financial assets without having to piece the puzzle together themselves.
- Asset holding structure (companies, shareholdings, legal entities)
Why? To identify all entities in which you hold an interest, and to verify that the documentation (articles of association, shareholder register, shareholders’ agreement) is up to date.
How to take stock of your assets in 4 steps
Step 1 — Gather without judging
Pull out every document, statement, contract, and deed—physical and digital. No sorting, no evaluating. The only goal at this stage is to get everything in one place. Do not spend time chasing what is missing: note the gaps and keep moving.
Step 2 — Sort by category
Organise what you have gathered into broad categories: pension (AVS, LPP, Pillar 3a), financial assets (accounts, investments, shareholdings), real estate (Switzerland and abroad), insurance, legal documents (will, power of attorney, company articles), and miscellaneous.
Step 3 — Identify the gaps
For each category: what is missing? Which documents are outdated or incomplete? Which beneficiaries have not been updated? Which structures no longer serve a purpose? This step produces a concrete action list.
Step 4 — Prioritise
Rank the gaps by urgency and impact. Succession and pension matters come first. Then anything generating unnecessary cost or risk (dormant structures, duplicate insurance). Finally, purely organisational items (filing, digitising, updating documents).
The mistakes that cost you most at retirement
Withdrawing your pension fund capital at the wrong time
The choice between a pension and a lump sum is irreversible. It must be notified in advance—generally several months before retirement. Once made, the decision cannot be changed. For those who opt for the lump sum: the tax on withdrawal depends on the canton and the year. Withdrawing capital from multiple sources (LPP and Pillar 3a) in the same year can create a significant and entirely avoidable tax spike.
The forgotten Pillar 3a—and its succession consequences
A Pillar 3a not withdrawn by age 70 is automatically liquidated. But if the named beneficiaries have not been updated since the policy was taken out, the capital may go to people who no longer reflect your wishes. In a succession, Pillar 3a falls outside the estate and is paid directly to the named beneficiaries—which can create serious imbalances between heirs if this has not been thought through in advance.
Unstructured foreign real estate
A property bought abroad with no thought given to the holding structure can create significant succession complications. The general rule in private international law: real estate is governed by the law of the country where it is located. Local inheritance taxes, processing timelines, language of proceedings—all of this can turn a straightforward intended transfer into a process spanning several years.
Insurance policies never updated in 20 years
A life insurance policy taken out early in your career with your first spouse as beneficiary. A disability cover whose insured amount reflects a 1998 salary. Home insurance covering an apartment you sold years ago. These situations are common. They represent either unnecessary cost or real risk in the event of a claim or death.
When to bring in an external advisor
3 signals that you need help
Some situations lend themselves to a solo inventory—others do not. Three signals that an external advisor will add real value:
- You hold assets in multiple countries. The tax and succession rules of each country must be coordinated—rarely something you can do alone, especially without knowledge of the applicable law.
- You do not know where to start. If the to-do list is so long it is paralysing, that is a sign you need someone to set the priorities—not to act for you, but to clarify what is urgent, what is important, and what can wait.
- Your family situation is complex. Children from different relationships, heirs with conflicting interests, assets held jointly with a business partner—these situations require careful anticipation to avoid succession conflict.
What a Personal Strategist can do that you cannot do alone
A Personal Strategist works with you to organise your assets and prepare your succession. In practice: they take stock alongside you, identify the gaps and risks, coordinate the necessary steps, and bring in specialists when the situation calls for it—particularly with foreign assets or cross-border issues. They keep your files moving, coordinate the different parties involved, and ensure nothing stays in a drawer. The result: a clear overall picture, up-to-date documents, and the peace of mind of knowing your affairs are in order.
Conclusion
Getting your house in order before retirement is not just another administrative task. It is an act of protection—for yourself, and for the people who will follow you.
The best time to do it is now—before an event forces your hand under pressure.
If you want to take stock of your asset situation or simply do not know where to begin, MB Projects works with you from the initial inventory through to a fully organised estate.
