Every week, t-online answers questions about pension topics. Today: Why is my pension already being deducted even though my ex-wife won’t retire for another ten years?
If couples divorce, a so-called pension settlement takes place before the family court. Pension entitlements that you acquired during your marriage or partnership are shared fairly between your former partners. This means that anyone who has acquired more will give something away, and anyone who has collected less will have their claims overwritten.
“If the family court’s decision becomes legally binding, it must be applied by the pension and pension providers involved,” says Dirk Manthey from the German Pension Insurance Bund t-online. “For statutory pension insurance, this means that the pension shares to be transferred must first be transferred from your insurance account to your ex-wife’s insurance account.”
When the ex-partner retires is irrelevant
If your pension begins after the family court’s decision on pension equalization has become final and effective, this will immediately be reflected in the amount of your salary – regardless of whether your divorced partner is already receiving a pension himself. This applies both to the start of the regular old-age pension and to disability pensions.
In the “Pension question of the week” Every Saturday we answer questions that you, our readers, send us. On this page you will find all pension questions that have already been answered. If you have any further questions about retirement planning and statutory pensions, please send us an email the subject “pension question” to “[email protected]”.
