Pension Insurance; Information and Counseling

The statutory pension insurance is a branch of social insurance. It covers the majority of the working population, either as mandatory insurance, insurance requiring an application, or voluntary insurance.

The pension insurance system is financed by contributions from insured persons and employers, as well as by federal subsidies.

Essentially, the following are insured:

• Employees working for pay, as well as apprentices or others employed for the purpose of vocational training, and persons who are being trained for gainful employment in youth welfare facilities, vocational training centers, or similar institutions for people with disabilities;
• Certain self-employed individuals, e.g., teachers, early childhood educators, and those working in nursing, maternity, infant, or child care who do not employ any employees subject to compulsory insurance in connection with their self-employment, as well as artists and journalists; Home-based business owners, tradespeople registered in the craftsmen’s register, and individuals who, in connection with their self-employment, do not regularly employ any employees subject to social insurance and who work on a permanent basis and essentially for only one client;
• Individuals performing voluntary military service, a voluntary social or environmental year, or federal voluntary service;
• Individuals receiving income replacement benefits (e.g., sick pay, injury pay, transitional allowance, or unemployment benefits);
• Individuals for whom periods of child-rearing are to be credited;
• Individuals who, on a non-commercial basis, provide care for a person in need of care with at least care level 2—who is entitled to benefits under social or private long-term care insurance—for at least 10 hours per week, spread over at least two days per week, in the person’s home environment;
• Persons subject to compulsory insurance upon application (e.g., development aid workers, self-employed persons not subject to compulsory insurance by law);

Members of licensed liberal professions covered by a professional pension system (e.g., physicians, attorneys) may, upon application, be exempted from the obligation to participate in the pension insurance system. Exemption from mandatory pension insurance is also possible for those in low-wage employment (“minijob”).

Certain groups of people (e.g., civil servants, judges) are exempt from insurance.

Those who are not mandatorily insured by law may, under certain conditions, apply for mandatory insurance or voluntarily insure themselves for periods after reaching the age of 16.

Essentially, the following benefits are provided: medical rehabilitation measures and services to facilitate participation in working life for the purpose of maintaining, improving, and restoring earning capacity, including financial assistance (e.g., transitional allowance, travel and transportation costs, household help), pensions for insured persons and survivors, lump-sum pension payments, and contribution refunds, as well as contributions toward health insurance for pensioners.

The statutory pension insurance agencies provide information, offer advice, accept applications, and grant the benefits provided for by law.
The insurance offices at the district offices and independent cities, the municipal administrations, and the insured persons’ advisors provide information, offer advice, and accept applications.

You can obtain information by calling our toll-free service number at 0800 1000 4800.

Pension Counseling

The City of Erlangen offers pension counseling to residents and employees in Erlangen.

The Pension Counseling Office of the City of Erlangen’s Department of Social Security Affairs is currently establishing a new staffing structure. As a result, we are temporarily available only on a limited basis, both by phone and in person. You can direct your inquiries either to the volunteer senior insurance advisors or directly to the Information and Counseling Center of the German
German Pension Insurance (Tel.: +(49) 0911 / 23423100).

• Pension Information
  Since we do not have access to the data held by the pension insurance agency, please provide a current pension statement showing your insurance history. You can request this in advance by calling 0911/23 423 100.
• Supporting Documentation for Account Reconciliation
  In order to settle an account, insured persons are required to provide supporting documents such as school transcripts, apprenticeship contracts, academic transcripts, certificates, work records, proof of employment abroad, naturalization certificates, etc.

Pension Counseling

Insured individuals who work or live in Erlangen can take advantage of pension counseling.

Please also refer to the “Required Documents” section.