As of: March 25, 2024, 7:28 a.m
By: Florian Neuroth
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Press
Split
The widow's pension is intended to secure the livelihood of surviving dependents.
Anyone who has their own income may receive less - even as a mini-jobber.
Frankfurt - The emotional pain should not be accompanied by the loss of economic existence: With the survivor's pension, the state offers a financial safety net for people who have lost their spouse.
According to VZ Vermögenszentrum Bank, more than 5 million people in Germany receive the so-called widow's or widower's pension from the German pension insurance - although a few conditions must be met in order to be entitled and there are also some misconceptions about the widow's pension.
Millions of people in Germany receive a survivor's pension after the death of their spouse.
However, if you have your own income, even through a mini-job, this so-called widow's pension can be reduced (symbolic image).
© IMAGO/Schoening
Mini-jobs are also counted towards the pension-reducing income in the widow's pension
Who actually gets money and how much is complicated and depends, among other things, on the age, the date of the marriage (or registered partnership) and the income of the former partner.
The topic of additional income always causes confusion.
If you have your own income, your widow's pension can be reduced - at least above a certain allowance.
But does income from a mini-job, most of which are actually tax-free, also count towards the credited income?
In fact, all income from professional activity is taken into account, including from a mini-job.
The German pension insurance provides information about this in a brochure online.
Almost all types of income would be taken into account, writes the pension insurance.
This also includes the normal pension and the mini-job.
There are only exceptions for so-called needs-based benefits such as citizen's benefit or basic security in old age as well as income from state-funded pension contracts.
Widow's pension allowance is now the same amount throughout Germany
In this case, crediting means that the widow's pension is reduced by a certain amount.
This is made up of the sum of all income to be taken into account and must necessarily be above a set exemption amount.
The allowance is linked to the current pension value - it is 26.4 times the current pension value (currently 37.60 euros).
While until recently the tax allowance was different in the old and new federal states, it is now 992.64 euros across Germany.
If the spouses have a child together, the allowance increases.
40 percent of the income above the exemption amount is taken into account.
In concrete terms, this means: 40 cents are taken into account for every euro of net income above the tax-free amount and reduced accordingly.
So anyone who has a net income that exceeds the exemption amount by 1,000 euros will receive 400 euros less widow's pension.
Important: In order to receive the survivor's pension, you must apply for it from the German Pension Insurance.
A basic requirement is that the marriage or civil partnership lasted at least one year.
There is an exception if the partner died in an accident.
Then there is also a claim for a shorter period of time.
(flon)