Advice
Where to get advice
This site shows rules and figures. Whether a transfer fits your life is an assessment – and that belongs to you or to someone allowed to advise you. Here is who that is, what it costs and what to expect.
Independent of products
| Where | What they do | Cost | Good to know |
|---|---|---|---|
| Verbraucherzentrale (consumer advice centre) of your state | Pension and contract advice, including existing Riester contracts; checks costs, guarantee, alternatives | usually €50–200 per appointment, by state | Sells nothing. Appointments are scarce – book early. verbraucherzentrale.de/beratung |
| Deutsche Rentenversicherung (statutory pension insurance) | Information on the state pension and how additional provision fits; Riester allowance questions via the ZfA | free | No product advice, but the best source for “what do I already have?”. deutsche-rentenversicherung.de |
| Fee-only investment adviser (§ 34h GewO) | Comprehensive advice for a fee, no commission | typically €100–250 per hour | Register at the chambers of commerce; the adviser may not accept commissions. vermittlerregister.info |
| Insurance adviser (§ 34d(2) GewO) | Advice on insurance contracts – e.g. whether to keep a Riester contract with guarantee and annuity factor | fee by agreement | Independent of insurers; also in the register. |
Tied to one house
| Where | What they do | Cost | Good to know |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bank or Sparkasse | Advice on their own products, including their own Altersvorsorgedepot; placing it in your overall provision | free in the meeting; paid through the products | You hear one house's offer. Ask for the account's price list and what the adviser earns on the sale. |
| Insurance intermediaries, brokers, sales organisations | Brokering contracts; brokers compare several providers, agents one | commission inside the product | A broker is contractually bound to you, an agent to the insurer. The status is on the business card and in the register. |
| Your current Riester provider | Information on the contract: transfer value, costs, annuity factor, option 3 | free | Obliged to inform, not to be neutral. The figures are still the most important – the letter generator requests them. |
What to bring to the appointment
- The latest statement of each contract (or the result of the scanner)
- Your pension information from Deutsche Rentenversicherung
- The result of the switch check – the rules for your contract on one page
- Three questions you want answered – written down
How to recognise good adviceIt asks about your situation first, not your balance. It states costs in euros and percent. It explains what it lives on. And it has no problem if you end up doing nothing.
Cost figures are orders of magnitude as of August 2026; the bodies named are examples of forms of advice, not a recommendation of individual providers.