Germany Approves 4.24% Statutory Pension Increase From July

Overview

• The Bundesrat on Friday, June 12 gave final approval to the federal ordinance that raises all statutory pensions by 4.24 percent effective 1 July 2026.
• The increase applies to old‑age, reduced‑earning‑capacity and survivors’ pensions and follows the wage‑linked adjustment formula used each year.
• The rise is possible because the sustainability factor is suspended and the government has legally fixed the pension level at 48 percent until 2031, which prevents automatic damping of increases.
• Deutsche Rentenversicherung will send individual Rentenanpassungsmitteilungen from mid‑June through the end of July and the first higher payments depend on each pension’s start date and deductions for health, care insurance and taxes.
• Longer‑term financing remains unsettled as an advisory Alterssicherungskommission prepares recommendations due at the end of June and external studies warn the contributor‑per‑pensioner ratio will fall over coming decades.