Such a common story.
We have warned continuously about the concerns with Standard Life GARS and I recently posted an analysis over nearly 10 years of an alternative strategy which has provided consistently better returns without taking more risk
Many investors find it difficult to achieve returns offered by the markets due to a misunderstanding of investment risk, costs and taxes.
for those who are more technically minded a full analysis can be found here
Producing investment products with good marketing is a business. Investors shouldn't confuse complexity with the right way to invest.
so the challenge here is that the “ideal” solution from an Irish tax perspective is to hold a portfolio which is subject to income tax since, from what you describe, it’s highly likely that your effective rate of tax is likely to be relatively low and certainly lower than the 41% that applies to Irish retail investment products.
to avail of such an option you would need to file an annual self assessment tax return which you might not be happy to do yourself and paying someone to do it for you could negate any advantages that should be due to you but which are challenging to say the least to access in Ireland.
you would also need to hold enough in risky assets to make use of the tax breaks which may be inappropriate for your overall risk capacity.
so the fault here lies partially with Revenue who make the process of investing unnecessarily complicated for Irish investors.
with €70k to invest our advice is typically to keep an adequate emergency fund in State Savings certificates and to invest the balance in an equity index fund via an insurance company since this deals with the tax return at source and is likely to be more cost effective than an alternative more bespoke solution.
it’s not the most tax efficient solution and all things being equal it’s not what we would choose to recommend but in the circumstances it’s probably the most suitable and appropriate option.