The prime minister, Paolo Gentiloni, signed the decree giving the green light to the voluntary Ape. This was communicated by the presidency of the Council, which published a photo of the signed provision on Twitter. The original text of the measure has been revised, incorporating several of the suggestions made by the Council of State. Other technical steps are now missing: registration with the Court of Auditors, arrival in the Official Gazette and above all the publication of agreements with banks and insurance companies.
The decree concerns the voluntary pension advance (Ape), which - unlike the "social" version, paid entirely by the state - requires those who want to take advantage of it to take out an insured bank loan with a duration of 20 years.
The voluntary Ape was due to leave on May XNUMXst, and this is one of the main problems still to be addressed. The five-month delay should be compensated from a financial point of view: INPS will probably pay the arrears only to those who request it and demonstrate that they need it.
President Gentiloni signed the Dpcm on the voluntary Ape https://t.co/hikE9Kn7L9 pic.twitter.com/ucETSOHnu7
- Palazzo_Chigi (@Palazzo_Chigi) 4 September 2017
Let's see better how the voluntary Bee works.
1. WHAT THE VOLUNTARY BEE IS AND HOW IT WORKS
Anyone who accesses the voluntary Ape receives a monthly allowance from the day they stop working until they are entitled to an old-age pension. The duration is between a minimum of 6 months and a maximum of 3 years and 7 months.
This money comes from an early contract with a bank, with related interest, to be repaid with a deduction on the social security check in the first 20 years of effective retirement.
The rate will vary from a minimum of 2% up to an annual average of 5-5,5%, but the net value will be lower thanks to the tax credit provided for in the budget law (which can reach up to 50% of the interest on the loan and on the prize). The goal would be to reach a Taeg equal to 3,2 percent.
On the loan it will also be mandatory to pay the insurance premium. The purpose of the policy is to protect the bank and the heirs from the risk that the subscriber dies before having paid the debt
2. THE REQUIREMENTS TO ACCESS THE VOLUNTARY APE
Workers with the following requirements will be able to access the voluntary Ape: at least 63 years of age, 20 years of contributions and a future pension of no less than 702 euros (i.e. 1,4 times the minimum INPS treatment), net of the repayment installment of the loan.
3. HOW THE VOLUNTARY APE IS PROVIDED
The voluntary Ape checks do not contribute to forming the income on which Irpef is paid and are disbursed in 12 months by INPS.
4. THE NEW "EXTENDMENT CLAUSE"
A novelty that should be contained in the decree concerns the so-called "extension clause". The law provides that in 2019 the retirement age will be adjusted to life expectancy and the age requirement for old-age treatment should rise to 67 years. Parliament is discussing the possibility of deactivating this mechanism, but the intervention would be costly and would jeopardize the stability of the pension system in the long term. If in the end nothing changes and in two years the retirement age really rises, the voluntary Ape will in turn adapt: the loan will expand, while the charge and the amortization installment will be redetermined so as to cover the months in addition that separate the pensioner from the right to the social security allowance.
5. THE VOLUNTARY APE IS NOT AN EARLY PENSION
On closer inspection, the voluntary Ape is not a real early pension, because it does not provide for any reduction in pension requirements. Rather, it is a financial advance whose cost – far from low – is only partially offset by a tax deduction of 50% on the interest and premium portion.
