Retirement pension of spouse and former spouse: death of an official - You're a public servant

Verified 07 novembre 2022 - Directorate for Legal and Administrative Information (Prime Minister)

Have you been married to a deceased official and want to know if you can receive a survivor's pension? You can receive a survivor's pension under certain conditions. The pension is equal to 50% the basic pension which the deceased official was receiving or could have received. We give you the useful information and explain the steps to do.

Your situation

  • The deceased was a public servant
  • State Civil Service (EPF)
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A portion of the retirement pension that the deceased employee received or could have received is returned to you.

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Spouse of deceased official

To receive a survivor's pension, you must complete at least one the following 4 conditions:

  • You have at least 1 child born from this marriage, including children born before the marriage, recognized by the father on whose behalf the pension rights were acquired
  • Your marriage lasted for at least 4 years (for same-sex couples who are married by 31 December 2014, the length of the Civil partnerships preceding the marriage is taken into account in the calculation of the 4 years)
  • Your marriage was celebrated at least 2 years before the deceased official was retired
  • The deceased was receiving a disability pension and the marriage took place before the event that led to his/her retirement

Warning  

if you live as a couple again after the death of the official, you lose the benefit of the survivor's pension. However, you can apply for it again if your new union is broken.

Former spouse of a deceased official

Not remarried

To receive a survivor's pension, you must complete at least one the following 4 conditions:

  • You have at least 1 child born from this marriage, including children born before the marriage, recognized by the father on whose behalf the pension rights were acquired
  • Your marriage lasted for at least 4 years (for same-sex couples who are married by 31 December 2014, the length of the Civil partnerships preceding the marriage is taken into account in the calculation of the 4 years)
  • Your marriage was celebrated at least 2 years before the deceased official was retired
  • The deceased was receiving a disability pension and the marriage took place before the event that led to his/her retirement

Warning  

if you live as a couple againHowever, after the death of the official, you lose the benefit of the survivor's pension. However, you can apply for it again if your new union is broken.

Remarried before the death of the official

In order to receive a survivor's pension, you must complete at least one the following conditions:

  • You have at least 1 child from that marriage (including children born before the marriage recognized by the father, on whose behalf the pension rights were acquired),
  • Your marriage lasted for at least 4 years (for same-sex couples who are married by 31 December 2014, the length of the Civil partnerships preceding the marriage is taken into account in the calculation of the 4 years)
  • Your marriage was celebrated at least 2 years before the deceased official was retired
  • The deceased was receiving a disability pension and the marriage took place before the event that led to his/her retirement
  • Your new union has ceased and you have not acquired any other survivor's pension rights for that new union
  • The right to a pension on behalf of the deceased official must not be granted to another spouse or orphan

Warning  

if you live as a couple again after the death of the official, you lose the benefit of the survivor's pension. You can apply for it again if your new union is broken.

When you change your situation (remarriage, divorce, etc.), you must report it to the State Pension Service.

Who shall I contact

FYI  

you are also entitled, subject to conditions, to the payment of a RAFP’s reversion benefit.

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Retired official

The survivor's pension is not automatically granted. You must request it on the Internet or by mail.

On the Internet

The request is made from your personal pension account:

Request my reversion

For information on the application for a survivor’s pension, you can contact the State Pension Service.

Who shall I contact
By mail

The application is made using a form and its explanatory note.

Retired official of the State - Application for survivor's or orphan's pension

If you meet the conditions for a child supplement, you must complete a second form:

Deceased State official - Application for child supplement to survivor's pension

You must send the request to the State Pension Service.

Who shall I contact

Deceased official in active employment

The survivor's pension is not automatically granted. You must request it on the Internet or by mail.

On the Internet

The request is made from your personal pension account:

Request my reversion

For information on the application for a survivor’s pension, you can contact the State Pension Service.

Who shall I contact
By mail

The application is made using a form and its explanatory note.

Official of the State who died in active employment - Application for survivor's or orphan's pension

If you meet the conditions for a child supplement, you must complete a second form:

Deceased State official - Application for child supplement to survivor's pension

For information on the application for a survivor’s pension, you can contact the State Pension Service.

Who shall I contact

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The deceased was married only once

The survivor's pension shall be equal to 50% the basic pension which the deceased official was receiving or could have received.

If your resources (including the amount of the survivor's pension) are less than minimum old-age amount, a pension supplement is paid to you to reach this minimum.

The survivor's pension may be increased by half of the amount of the child surcharge that the deceased official was or could have been receiving. To benefit from this increase, you must have raised at least 3 children for at least 9 years before their 16th birthdaye birthday or before the age at which they ceased to be dependants.

The deceased was married several times

The survivor's pension shall be shared between the spouse and the former spouses of the deceased official.

This division is proportional to the length of each marriage.

If the deceased was disabled, the amount of the survivor's pension may be increased by half of the disability pension he or she received.

Payment of survivor's pension is not automatic. You have to ask for it.

The amounts to which you may be entitled will be limited to the current year and to the 3 calendar years (from 1er January to December 31) preceding it.

Example :

If you apply on September 16, 2022, after your spouse's death on September 16, 2012, the reversion amount will not exceed 1er January 2019.

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Retired official

The official's pension shall be paid until the end of the month in which he dies.

For example, if the grievor dies on September 16, 2022, his pension is paid until September 30, 2022.

The starting point of the survivor's pension shall be 1er day of the month following death (i.e., in the previous example, at 1er October 2022).

Deceased official in active employment

The starting point of the survivor's pension shall be the day after death.

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