Additional Voluntary Contributions (AVCs) are a private pension vehicle offered by financial services and pension providers. AVCs allow members of an occupational pension scheme to make extra payments towards their pension, in order to enhance their retirement benefits. They are separate to the occupational pension benefits that a member of a public service pension scheme accrues, and they operate differently to the purchase of notional service scheme.
In the civil and public service, AVCs are generally sponsored by trade unions. Agreement to facilitate these plans in the civil service was communicated through Letter to Personnel Officers 19 February 1987 – Additional Voluntary Contributions. Trade union-sponsored plans are generally available to public servants, depending on the trade union they are represented by.
If you have queries about additional voluntary contributions, such as the maximum AVC you can make, you should contact the financial services or pension provider concerned. The Department of Public Expenditure, NDP Delivery, and Reform cannot advise you on the terms of any AVC scheme operated by a private company.
