Target-Benefit Plan

Target-Benefit Plan

A pension plan with a defined contribution but no guaranteed payout. That is, when the annuitant purchases the plan, he/she makes a contribution each month according to a formula that is most likely to result in a certain payout when he/she begins receiving payments. The formula assumes a certain interest rate and/or market movements will take place. If these do not occur according to the formula's projections, the plan's operators are under no obligation to provide the projected payout. Instead, they provide what the contributions have actually earned over the life of the pension.