People insured with the German pension insurance who are no longer able to work for a minimum of six hours a day on a regular basis for health reasons may be entitled to pension owing to reduced earning capacity. If the person is only able to work for a maximum of three hours per day, this is referred to as a full reduction in earning capacity (volle Erwerbsminderung).
To be eligible for a pension, it is necessary, among other things, to have paid contributions to the statutory pension insurance for a minimum of five years in total and to have made at least three years of compulsory contributions for an insured employment or activity in the last five years prior to the onset of the reduction in earning capacity.
In 2014, the non-contributary supplementary period (Zurechnungszeit) for first-time retirees was extended by two years. As a result, people with reduced earning capacity are now treated as if they had continued to work with their previous income until their 62nd birthday instead of until their 60th birthday, as was previously the case. This means that additional qualifying periods are taken into account for which no contributions were paid.
In January 2019, the non-contributary supplementary period was increased to 65 years and eight months. From January 2020, the non-contributary supplementary period will increase by one month each year until 2027, and by two months every year thereafter, until 2031, when the statutory retirement age of 67 is reached.
Updated: 08/21
