Pension for the Reversal of Pension Insurance

Verified 01 January 2025 - Directorate for Legal and Administrative Information (Prime Minister)

On the death of your spouse, you can, under certain conditions, collect a part of his retirement pension, called survivor's pension, from the Social Security Pension Insurance if your spouse was or could have been receiving a basic pension from the Pension Insurance. We present you with the information you need to know.

Warning  

This page shows the conditions for assigning a survivor's pension by the Social Security Pension Insurance.

If the deceased was or could have been receiving one or more retirement pensions one or more other pension schemes (basic or complementary), you can use a simulator. It allows you to assess your survivor pension entitlements from these other pension plans. Regardless of the pension plan(s) under which the deceased was a member, you must must have been married with that person in order to be entitled to a survivor's pension.

Condition related to the deceased person

In order for a survivor's pension to be granted to you by the Social Security Pension Insurance, the deceased person has benefited or could have benefited from retirement of a pension of the Pension Insurance. That's the case if it was wage earner in the private sector or self-employed or public service contractor or artist-author.

FYI  

A survivor's pension may also be granted as a result of disappearance of a person for more than one year without claiming his or her retirement pension.

Condition relating to the applicant for the survivor's pension

Marriage condition

You must to have been married with the deceased. The Civil partnershipsCivil partnerships : Civil Solidarity Pact and cohabitation does not provide a means of obtaining a survivor’s pension.

The divorced husband shall be treated as a surviving spouse.

The divorced spouse of the deceased may receive the survivor's pension even if he lives as a couple again on the death of her ex-husband.

Age condition

You must be at least 55 years of age.

Resource Condition

Your resources gross annuals shall be less than the following:

  • €24,710.40 if you live alone
  • €39,536.64 if you live as a couple.

The resources that are considered in calculating your gross annual resources are listed in the package leaflet attached to the basic reversion pension single application form (pages 3 and 4).

If you have active income, it is only considered up to 70% of their amount.

The resources taken into account when applying for a survivor's pension are those of the three calendar months before the date of award of the survivor's pension. Where they exceed one quarter of the applicable resources ceiling, the resources of the 12 calendar months preceding the date of award of the survivor's pension shall be taken into account.

You can apply for a survivor's pension on the official website Retirement Info.

This online service allows you to only one valid application from all basic and supplementary pension schemes to which your spouse or former spouse contributed.

Applying for a retirement pension

If you don't have the internet, you can apply using the following form:

Single request for basic reversion pension

Please note

This paper form is valid for several basic pension schemes listed on page 1.

If your spouse or former spouse was receiving a retirement pension from one or more pension funds not listed in this list (including theAgirc-ArcoAgirc-Arco : General Association of Employee Pension Institutions - Association for the Supplementary Retirement Scheme for Employees), you must apply for an additional survivor's pension from that fund or from those different pension funds.

When applying for a survivor's pension, you must indicate the date from which you wish to receive a survivor's pension. You must meet the following conditions:

  • This date must must be on 1er day of a month
  • It cannot be earlier than 1er the day of the month following the month in which you reach the age of 55
  • It cannot be before your application is filed.

However, the earliest date for payment of the survivor's pension may be 1er the day of the month following death, if you file the application within one year of death.

Failure to reply for more than 4 months to an application for a survivor's pension shall be deemed to constitute a decision to refuse.

Basic amount of survivor's pension

The survivor's pension shall be equal to 54% the basic retirement pension which the deceased was or could have been entitled to.

The amount of the survivor's pension cannot be inferior to 3,983.29 per year (either €331.94 per month) if the deceased was at least 15 years old (60 quarters) of pension insurance to the general scheme.

If the deceased had less than 15 years of pension insurance, this minimum amount is divided into 60my and the minimum review pension is equal to 60my that the deceased had proof of quarters of insurance.

This minimum amount shall be revalued at 1er January of each year, based on the average of the development of non-tobacco consumer prices.

When the amount of your survivor's pension and your resources exceeds €24,710.40 if you live alone or €39,536.64 if you live as a couple, your survivor's pension is reduced so that this ceiling is not exceeded.

The survivor's pension shall be subject to the following contributions:

Where the deceased was in receipt of a second retirement pension as a result of job-pension cumulationHowever, this second retirement pension also entitles a survivor's pension under the same conditions.

Increase in survivor's pension according to the age and resources of the beneficiary

The survivor's pension shall be increased by 11.1% where the following conditions are met:

  • You are at least 67 years old
  • And the sum of all your retirement pensions (basic and supplementary) and all your survivors' pensions does not exceed €2,993.14 by quarter.

When the sum of your superannuation, survivor's pension and the increase exceeds €2,993.14 each quarter, the increase shall be reduced so as not to exceed the ceiling.

Increase for children in the amount of the survivor's pension

The amount of the survivor's pension shall be increased by 10% if you have had at least 3 children.

If you are not divorced from the deceased, the amount of this increase cannot be less than 10me the minimum amount of the survivor's pension.

The amount of the survivor's pension is also increased if you meet the following conditions on the death of your spouse or former spouse:

  • You don't get a pension
  • You are under the age of 67
  • You have one or more dependent children.

Dependent children include the following:

  • Minor child
  • Child under the age of 21 who is continuing his studies
  • Child under 21 years of age who, as a result of disabilities or chronic illnesses, is permanently unable to work in paid employment.

The amount of the increase is 112.58 per child per month.

This amount is revalued at 1er January of each year, based on the average of the development of non-tobacco consumer prices.

The lump-sum dependent child supplement ceases when you receive a retirement pension or when the child for whom it is granted is no longer dependent on you.

When the amount of your survivor's pension, the lump sum increase and your resources exceeds €24,710.40 if you live alone or €39,536.64 if you live as a couple, the flat-rate supplement for dependent children shall be reduced in the same proportions as your survivor's pension so that this ceiling is not exceeded.

The survivor's pension is paid from the date you requested. It is paid every month, with due date.

The survivor's pension is reviewable if the amount of your resources changes.

You must inform your CarsatCarsat : Pension Insurance and Occupational Health Fund of any change in income.

Your survivor's pension can be revised upwards or downwards (or suspended) if your resources change.

However, your survivor's pension can no longer be revised in the following cases :

  • After 3 months from the date you receive your basic and supplementary retirement pensions
  • On the date you reach the minimum retirement age when you do not have a retirement pension.

When the deceased was remarried, the survivor's pension shall be shared between the surviving spouse and the divorced spouse or former spouses in proportion to the respective duration of each marriage.

The duration of each marriage is determined from date to date and rounded down to the next few months.

If the surviving spouse and the previous divorced spouse or spouses do not all meet the conditions for the award of the survivor's pension on the same date, the shares of the survivor's pension which are respectively due to them shall be determined when calculating the entitlements of 1er of them who request it.

These shares in survivor's pensions are then paid out as the beneficiaries meet the conditions for receiving them.

On the death of one of the beneficiaries, his share shall increase the share of the other or, where appropriate, of the other beneficiaries.

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  • Pension insurance - 39 60

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