Overview

• Skilled‑trades voices, including roofer Jens‑Norbert Schmidt, say raising the retirement age to 70 may be unavoidable if paired with flexible models such as reduced hours, lighter duties and retraining.
• Public‑sector unions and the CDU/CSU reject Labour Minister Bärbel Bas’s proposal to require civil servants, MPs and the self‑employed to pay into the statutory pension, warning of uncertainty and new burdens.
• The Cologne‑based IW estimates that fully moving 1.9 million civil servants into the scheme would cost roughly €10–20 billion annually depending on whether public employers pay the full or shared contribution.
• July’s EU country‑specific recommendations urge Germany to lengthen careers and curb early‑retirement incentives, and proposals such as an Aktivrente to ease earning in retirement are under discussion.
• Near‑term rules shift incentives: from 2026 the Vertrauensschutz for many severely disabled ends—earliest pension at 62 with up to 10.8% cuts and 65 for an unreduced pension—while in 2025 the Altersentlastungsbetrag lets eligible over‑64s shield up to €627 of non‑pension income, with amounts phasing down in future years.