Overview
- This week the CDU/CSU floated keeping the 45‑year rule in name while reducing or excluding credited childcare and caregiver periods, a move the SPD and experts say would cut qualification for many, especially women.
- The Alterssicherungskommission’s June recommendations to abolish the Abschlagsfreie Rente nach 45 Beitragsjahren and tie retirement ages to life expectancy remain only proposals and have not become law.
- Transition and trust‑protection rules that would determine which birth cohorts or prearranged retirements are shielded are still unresolved and are the central bargaining point in coalition talks.
- The Deutsche Rentenversicherung (DRV) has warned that buying out early‑retirement deductions (Abschlagsausgleich) will likely cost more in 2027 and urges people to obtain personal calculations now.
- Supporters argue removing or narrowing the 45‑year route could save roughly €10–13 billion a year to help fund a new capital‑based pillar and limit contribution rises, while critics warn of significant distributional harm and legal challenges; the government aims for a cabinet bill by year‑end and Bundestag debate in early 2027.