As of: March 5, 2024, 9:24 a.m
By: Amy Walker
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The federal government is working on a pension package that will be presented next week.
A premium increase is almost inevitable.
Berlin – After it had to be postponed several times, it is now finally here: According to media reports, pension package II will be presented next week.
The core of the package will be the stock pension (“generational capital”) and the stabilization of the pension level at 48 percent.
This means it is almost certain: pension insurance contributions will increase in the medium term.
Retirement age should not increase with the pension package
Regularly insured people currently pay 18.6 percent of their gross salary into the pension fund.
This is how the current pensions are financed, so roughly speaking: The money that now flows into the pension fund goes directly into the account of the current pensioners.
This is how the pay-as-you-go system works, which is based on an agreement between the generations.
But due to demographic change, fewer and fewer workers have to care for more and more older people.
The system is in danger of collapsing, which is why there is so much discussion about pension reforms.
Federal Labor Minister Hubertus Heil wants to “stabilize the statutory pension in the long term”.
(Archive photo) © Britta Pedersen/dpa
With its pension package, the traffic light promised: The retirement age will not increase and pensions will not decrease either.
Contributors therefore inevitably have to pay in more.
The stock pension is intended to help delay the increase in contributions for as long as possible.
But even with the stock pension, the traffic light assumes that contributions are likely to rise to over 20 percent in the 2030s.
This wouldn't be the first time that insured people have spent so much of their gross salary on their pension.
Between 1997 and 1998 the contribution rate was 20.3 percent and was reduced to 19.5 in 1999.
Since 2011, the contribution rates have been reduced three times.
Table: This is what the wage slip looks like with a 22 percent pension contribution
An increase in contributions to over 20 percent would not be unheard of.
However, experts assume that contributions would have to rise to 22 percent by 2040 in order to meet the federal government's current plans.
We have calculated here how this can affect an individual's net wage:
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Gross wages |
Pension contribution at 18.6% |
... at 20 % |
... at 22% |
|---|---|---|---|
2000 Euro |
186.00 euros/month |
200 euros/month |
220 euros/month |
3000 euros |
279.00 euros/month |
300 euros/month |
330 euros/month |
3500 euros |
325.50 euros/month |
350 euros/month |
385 euros/month |
4000 euros |
372.00 euros/month |
400 euros/month |
440 euros/month |
4500 euros |
418.50 euros/month |
450 euros/month |
495 euros/month |
4800 euros |
446.40 euros/month |
480 euros/month |
528 euros/month |
5000 Euro |
465.00 euros/month |
500 euros/month |
550 euros/month |
The additional burden is sometimes considerable - a person with a gross wage of 4,000 euros per month already has to pay 842 euros in social security contributions.
With a pension contribution rate of 22 percent, that jumps to 910 euros.