legal situation
Those who have at least 35 years of pensionable periods and were born before 1964 receive their long-term insured pension without any deductions. For the later cohorts, the retirement age is gradually raised from 63 and the pension is gradually reduced: for every month that the insured person retires before their individual statutory retirement age, 0.3 percent is deducted from their total pension. The maximum deduction is 14.4 percent, so it is possible to retire four years earlier.
If, on the other hand, you have accumulated at least 45 years of insurance, you benefit from the pension for those who have been insured for a particularly long time. In these cases, it is also possible for those born later to retire early without deductions. The entry age will be raised step by step to 67 by 2029, depending on the year, this year it will be 64. Separate regulations apply to people with severe disabilities; they have to work less long hours than people without disabilities, but they are required to have a so-called waiting period of at least 35 years.
“Purchase” a higher pension
If you still want to retire early, but do not want to accept a serious reduction in the monthly pension amount, you have the option of “buying” an undiminished pension by paying a certain amount once. To be affected by this legal regulation, a minimum age of 50 years is required. Depending on the amount by which the insured person’s pension would actually be reduced, a total amount is calculated, which the insured person pays to the pension fund as a one-time special payment. In return, the reduction in his pension will be canceled and he will receive his full monthly salary until the end of his life.
partial retirement
The semi-retirement model is the concept of a smooth, less abrupt transition from work to retirement. The insured have no legal right to this option, which is why a separate agreement with the employer is required. Partial retirement comes in two different forms. In the block model, employees reduce their working hours for the last four years of their career: they work full-time for the first two years, but do not work at all for the last two years, although they receive the same part-time salary in both blocks.
The equal distribution model, on the other hand, is not suitable for early retirement because the remaining working hours are divided up constantly over the agreed period. Partial retirement is very similar to the construct of a part-time employment contract and is a voluntary service provided by the employer to enable employees to start their retirement earlier. For such an agreement, the age of 55 must be reached and there are also three years of compulsory insurance contributions of the past five years to prove.
Thomas Weschle / Editor finanzen.net
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