This guide outlines the integration for German pension accounts beginning with the Altersvorsorgedepot (AVD) and the Standarddepot.
The German pension products - Altersvorsorgedepot, Standarddepot, and Frühstart-Rente - are tax-advantaged savings and investment accounts introduced as part of a broader pension reform.
This guide focuses on the Altersvorsorgedepot and Standarddepot pension account. They are designed for adults who are residents of Germany and saving for retirement. They provide the following benefits for end users:
- Pension accounts: Up to two pension accounts per user, with a contribution limit of €6,840 per year for each.
- Government bonuses: Individuals may receive an annual bonus payment plus additional child and young adult bonuses.
- Tax exemption: Investments grow free of capital gains tax during the accumulation phase and are only taxed when paid out as regular income.
- Transfers between Altersvorsorgedepot/Standarddepot or from existing Riester contracts - the currently available private pension account - into an Altersvorsorgedepot/Standarddepot are possible.
The Frühstart-Rente is a tax-advantaged pension account for children and adolescents between the ages of 6 to 18. Users receive monthly government bonus payments of €10 and can optionally add private contributions. Frühstart-Rente accounts automatically convert into an Altersvorsorgedepot or Standarddepot when the child turns 18 years old. More information will be available in the Frühstart-Rente guide.
Depending on the selected pension account - Altersvorsorgedepot or Standarddepot - you can offer different investment experiences and use cases to your users:
The Standarddepot offers a simple investment setup focused on two pre-selected funds or ETFs, selected by you according to prescribed risk classifications. This option is designed for users seeking a simple and low-risk retirement solution. As per the current legislation, it is mandatory to offer the Standarddepot.
A diversified and professionally managed portfolio solution where you manage investments across the eligible instrument universe (e.g., ETFs, funds, ELTIFs, bonds) according to a model or personalised portfolio aligned with the investor’s risk profile.
A flexible, user-controlled retirement solution where users can freely select, buy, and sell from the full range of eligible instruments. This setup can be combined with Upvest’s portfolio and savings plan functionality such as automated rebalancing or self-selected lifecycle models, enabling an “investing on autopilot” experience.
Both the Altersvorsorgedepot and Standarddepot are eligible for government bonus payments (Zulagen). Bonus amounts are calculated based on eligibility and contributions made within the respective tax year and are credited directly to the investment account. The bonus applies at the user level, not on an individual account level.
- Individual bonus: The government provides an annual bonus of up to €540 for directly eligible users, calculated via a tiered subsidy model, including 50% on the first €360 contributed and 25% on contributions between €361 and €1,800. Indirectly eligible users may receive up to €175. Users must contribute a minimum of €120 per year to be eligible for the bonus.
- Child bonus: Users can apply for an additional annual government bonus payment paid into the parent’s pension account. Currently this equals up to €300 for each eligible child.
- Young adult bonus: Additional one-time government bonus of €200 for qualifying young adults aged 18-25 years old.
Users must apply through their provider to the Zentrale Zulagenstelle für Altersvermögen (ZfA) to receive the government bonuses. After applying, the ZfA confirms the bonus eligibility and calculates the respective amount on a yearly basis. The Investment API provides the endpoints for you to submit the user’s application and webhooks to monitor and track the application’s status.
See the Bonus management section for more information on applying for the government bonus.
The pension products must be officially certified with the German tax authorities (Bundeszentralamt für Steuern, BZSt). Upon certification, providers receive a certification number, which they need to indicate to register as a provider with the Zentrale Stelle für Altersvermögen, ZfA. To process pensions with the ZfA, Upvest requires the following information from your certification:
- Provider number (Anbieternummer).
- Certification number per product type (Zertifizierungsnummer).
Clients must also inform the ZfA that Upvest will function as their IT service provider (IT-Dienstleister).
Upvest makes it easy for you to manage the German pension process. We provide the following endpoints to help provide a state-of-the-art pension product for your users.
| Functionality | Related Endpoint |
|---|---|
| Product configurations | The /pension_de/product_configurations endpoint stores the product information sheet (product information, provider information, fees, instruments and weights/Dachfonds allocations).Multiple configurations can be saved to represent different propositions such as Standarddepot, discretionarily managed Altersvorsorgedepot and self-directed Altersvorsorgedepot. |
| Product information sheet | Use the /reports endpoint to input end user details and generate an individual product information sheet before they sign their contract. |
| User management | We provide all the required fields in our /users API to onboard users into the system including tax residency verification. |
| Account groups and accounts | Use the /account_groups and /accounts endpoints to open and administer accounts linked to the tax wrapper. |
| Tax wrappers | The /pension_de/wrappers endpoint manages the configuration, business rules and logic for tax-advantaged accounts including Altersvorsorgedepot and Standarddepot. |
| Allowance tracking | The /allowances endpoint tracks the user’s contribution and verifies that the user meets the minimum and maximum contribution amounts. |
| Savings plans | Manage regular orders with POST /savings_plans requests. |
| Portfolio allocations | In Standarddepot clients can use portfolio accounts to maintain the /portfolios/allocations the user has selected for their account.This is also critical for managing the de-risking process prior to payout phase. |
| Investment strategies | Auto invest can be configured to ensure cash is not left on the account uninvested. Self balancing orders can be set to ensure any new contributions or withdrawals address the drift from the target allocation. |
| Bonus application permission | You can use the /bonus_permissions endpoint to store the end user’s permission details that allows Upvest to apply for government bonuses on behalf of the end user.This entity also allows you to add any additional details about associated individuals needed for the bonus application such as spouse and children. This can be stored once (or edited) and used for all future bonus applications. |
| Bonus application | Upvest can manage the annual application process and you can use both the /bonus_applications endpoint and webhook to track the entire application process and to query data on historical applications.The webhook will also notify of any missing information from the application in advance of submission to the Zentrale Zulagenstelle für Altersvermögen (ZfA). |
| Transfers | The /pension_de/transfers endpoint provides the ability to initiate the transfer of an existing German pension account to an Altersvorsorgedepot/Standarddepot account. |
| Transfer confirmations | In a post-trade setup clients can use the /pension_de/transfers/{transfer_id}/confirmations endpoint to inform Upvest of cash received to the client pooling account.This allows Upvest to reconcile against the tax pot history and complete the transfer process. |
| Rebalancing | Clients can trigger a rebalance using /portfolios/rebalancings/executions to complete the mandated derisking strategies in Standarddepot |
| Payout phase | We create a default payout configuration that sets the approaches to payouts for the end user. Clients can use the /pension_de/wrappers/{tax_wrapper_id}/payout_configuration endpoint to view, manage, and update the payout configuration. |
| Payouts | Upvest supports payouts during the payout phase as well as payouts triggered by harmful use. Clients can use /pension_de/wrappers/{tax_wrapper_id}/payouts endpoint to retrieve all pension payouts for the account or to request a withdrawal outside of the payout phase. |
| Reports | The /reports endpoint also provides the ability to access all user, account, regulatory, and MiFIR reports for the end user. |