German retirement pension payments to increase next July
Amidst the ongoing cost-of-living crisis, there is some good news ahead – at least for the approximately 21 million pensioners living in Germany – as retirement pension payments are set to rise again next July.
According to an official estimate, statutory retirement pensions are to go up by around 3.5 percent in West Germany and a good 4.5 percent in East Germany next July.
This data is from the draft of the 2022 pension insurance report, which German newspaper Bild am Sonntag had sight of.
"According to the data available now, pensioners can again expect a noticeable increase in pensions in the summer," employment minister Hubertus Heil told the paper.
For a pension of €1,000, the expected rise means people will receive €35 more in the west and €42 more in the east.
Pensions are expected to climb by a total of almost 43 percent by 2036, which corresponds to an average growth rate of 2.6 percent per year, according to the report.
However, the 2023 estimate is less than the rise pensioners received this July when pensions increased by 5.35 percent in the west and 6.12 percent in the east.
Back in 2021, the pandemic was still having an effect, so there was no increase in the west and only a 0.72-percent rise in the east.
Calculations for the period up to 2027 are made on the basis of the government's economic projections from October 12th of this year.
According to the provisional calculations, the contribution rate to the statutory pension insurance scheme should remain at the current value of 18.6 percent until 2026.
Heil told Bild am Sonntag that, contrary to many forecasts, they had been able to keep the contribution rate stable for longer than expected.
This was good news in the current cost-of-living crisis, he said, as it meant that "working people can be confident that the contribution rate will not increase".
The 2022 pension insurance report is set to be passed by the cabinet on November 30th, according to current plans.
READ ALSO:
- REVEALED: The documents you should never throw away in Germany
- German cabinet approves €300 energy relief payment for pensioners
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According to an official estimate, statutory retirement pensions are to go up by around 3.5 percent in West Germany and a good 4.5 percent in East Germany next July.
This data is from the draft of the 2022 pension insurance report, which German newspaper Bild am Sonntag had sight of.
"According to the data available now, pensioners can again expect a noticeable increase in pensions in the summer," employment minister Hubertus Heil told the paper.
For a pension of €1,000, the expected rise means people will receive €35 more in the west and €42 more in the east.
Pensions are expected to climb by a total of almost 43 percent by 2036, which corresponds to an average growth rate of 2.6 percent per year, according to the report.
However, the 2023 estimate is less than the rise pensioners received this July when pensions increased by 5.35 percent in the west and 6.12 percent in the east.
Back in 2021, the pandemic was still having an effect, so there was no increase in the west and only a 0.72-percent rise in the east.
Calculations for the period up to 2027 are made on the basis of the government's economic projections from October 12th of this year.
According to the provisional calculations, the contribution rate to the statutory pension insurance scheme should remain at the current value of 18.6 percent until 2026.
Heil told Bild am Sonntag that, contrary to many forecasts, they had been able to keep the contribution rate stable for longer than expected.
This was good news in the current cost-of-living crisis, he said, as it meant that "working people can be confident that the contribution rate will not increase".
The 2022 pension insurance report is set to be passed by the cabinet on November 30th, according to current plans.
READ ALSO:
- REVEALED: The documents you should never throw away in Germany
- German cabinet approves €300 energy relief payment for pensioners
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