You probably don't feel like reading a blog about pensions. I completely understand that your attention span regarding this topic is limited to that of a toddler who has to clean up after playing. That was exactly my problem for eight years. But since you are always wiser with hindsight, I will share my personal story. So that hopefully you will be wise sooner than I was. 

When I started as a freelancer, pension was the last thing on my mind. Pension seemed like something for 'later' and as a starting self-employed person, that later seemed very far away. But we are now more than eight years later and suddenly later is very close. Fortunately, I have now arranged my pension, but if I could go back in time, my pension would have been one of the first things I would have arranged. 

Pension? I'll arrange that when...

In the early years of my entrepreneurship, I didn't really think about my pension. I was in my early thirties, and life after my working life seemed a long way off. Besides, I wasn't earning enough to pay for a pension yet, was I? I had to be able to make ends meet comfortably, fill a savings account, have a stable income, and only then could I start thinking about a pension.

But yes, after a certain age, getting older suddenly goes very fast. And in the meantime, I had two children. Plus a divorce behind me and, holy shit, now I was forty and I still hadn't arranged anything.

But it wasn't just the feeling that I had plenty of time and that I wasn't earning enough that was holding me back…

Pension. 

That's really one of those words that makes my mind wander spontaneously.

Coverage ratio. 

I don't know anything about that either. 

Return? 

Whatever. 

Honestly, I didn't really feel like delving into this subject either. But still the feeling kept gnawing and I kept thinking: I really need to find out how that works, pension if you are self-employed.

Seek and ye shall find

Some things in life are unexplainable. Just when I seriously intended to arrange my pension, Vive came my way as a customer. And what turned out? Pensions aren't as complicated as they seem. Through the interviews with Alex, Paul, Tom and Ramses, I became very enthusiastic and confident to arrange my pension with Vive. And that went super easy. I was sent a form that I could sign digitally, and after downloading the app, I suddenly had a pension account. Piece of cake.

So saving for retirement through Vive means I have to pay less tax? Sign me up!

Before I started with Vive, I saved for my pension through an investment account. But an important reason to open an official pension account with Vive was the tax benefits. If you save yourself, either through an investment account or simply through a savings account, you pay wealth tax above an accumulated capital of €57,684 (in 2025). While the amounts I invest through a pension account are exempt from this tax. Rather than giving my hard-earned and saved money to the tax authorities, I invest it in my pension. 

In addition, you can deduct contributions to a pension account that fall within your annual allowance (geez, another one of those pension words, luckily we have written a blog about it here) from your taxable income. This means that you pay less income tax, while at the same time building your pension for later. And Vive takes care of reporting that to the tax authorities for you. So there is no extra administration involved. Unfortunately, extra deposits on top of your annual allowance do not yield any more, too bad for the government. 

My recommendation to other self-employed professionals

What I learned from Alex is that the duration of building up is more important than how much you deposit. So even if you start now with €50 per month, you will ultimately be better off than if you start five years later with €250 per month. And that is also my most important advice for other self-employed people. Just start now, even if you only deposit €50 per month. 

That's how I started, with a monthly deposit of €50. The clear forecasts in the Vive app showed what this would yield by the time I retire. This insight was so motivating that I soon doubled my deposit. In the app, you can see your assets grow, which gives you a great deal of insight into your future AND it makes investing in your pension fun. 

And if you're not yet stable enough to invest every month? Or a client doesn't pay you on time? No problem, you can also choose not to invest one month. Or to invest more one month. The flexibility you have with Vive is just very pleasant for a self-employed person. 

So, when are you going to arrange your pension?

In hindsight, I should have started investing in my pension much earlier. Fortunately, it is super easy with Vive. I'll list all the tips for you again:

• Start now, even with a little: Even a small monthly deposit can grow significantly thanks to the power of compound interest.
• Simple and fast: You can open a pension account with Vive in just a few clicks.
• Save on taxes: No wealth tax on your pension money and your contribution is deducted from your taxable income. A nice bonus in the summer. 
• Flexible contributions: Adjust your contribution based on your financial situation—more or less, depending on what is possible each month.
• Insightful and motivating: See with your own eyes how your pension pot grows in the Vive app, which motivates you to continue saving.

Hopefully, after reading my story, you are wiser than I was. So what are you waiting for? Arrange your pension quickly! Your future self will thank you. 

This guest article is written by: Saida Boujemaaoui - freelance copywriter.