Pension

1) Retirement pension

It is always necessary to meet the insurance period + retirement age in order to be entitled to a pension. For foreigners, it is necessary to know whether the necessary insurance periods are added together between states or not. This is based on interstate agreements. The right to a retirement pension after 2018 will arise for people who reach retirement age and at the same time obtain the necessary insurance period – 35 years, based on a submitted application. You can still continue your economic activity – employment or business.

Types of retirement pension

Full retirement pension

The entitlement arises if the insurance period was acquired in accordance with Czech legislation in the Czech Republic, without taking into account insurance periods abroad.

A regular retirement pension can be obtained when you reach the required retirement age and at the same time have:

• 35 years of service in the Czech Republic including compensatory periods,
• 30 years of service in the Czech Republic excluding compensatory periods.

Postponed retirement pension can be obtained if you reach an age 5 years higher than the retirement age according to your year of birth and at the same time have:

• 20 years of service in the Czech Republic including compensatory periods,
• 15 years of service in the Czech Republic excluding compensatory periods.

Partial retirement pension

The claim arises if the insurance period is completed only taking into account insurance periods from other countries (if a valid contract exists).

The following conditions must be met:

• Sum of insurance periods in the Czech Republic + insurance periods in another state = 35 years
• Years worked in another state are added only if a contract has been concluded between the states. Overview of concluded contracts HERE.
• The addition of worked periods works between EU states.

If you do not meet the above conditions, you are entitled to retire at 65 years of age if you receive a disability pension. If you meet the conditions for a disability pension, you are entitled to apply for an old-age pension if you have reached retirement age. It is important not to confuse disability with disability pension. The CSSA may approve your disability, but you may not meet the conditions for a disability pension. Therefore, it is necessary to meet these conditions.

The retirement age can be found HERE.

Basic terminiology

• Insurance period = “worked time” – the time during which you worked and insurance was properly paid (whether as an employee or self-employed person).
• Replacement insurance period = insurance period when you did not earn and which is only partially included in the pension insurance for the right to a pension. This includes, for example, childcare, care for a dependent person, studies before 2010, if they lasted at least one year. Always take into account the individual case.
• Pension insurance = part of the social insurance system, paid by the employer, self-employed persons pay it themselves
• ČSSZ = Czech Social Security Administration. It deals with pension and sickness insurance, and also operates in the field of medical assessment services, etc. It includes: PSSZ = Prague Social Security Administration and OSSZ = District Social Security Administration.

Social insurance

• Pension insurance is part of the so-called social insurance. If you are an employee or self-employed person, you are obliged to pay it and this period is therefore counted towards your pension and your pension is then calculated from it.
• The insurance period can be supplemented by employment, self-employment, or you can pay voluntary pension insurance.
• If you work, your employer pays it for you. If you are self-employed, you pay it yourself.
• From undeclared work – without a contract, no insurance is paid into the system – > years are not counted!
• Earnings under 10,000 CZK/month under a Work Performance Agreement (DPP) – the employer is not obliged to pay social insurance for you and this period is therefore not counted towards the pension insurance system.
• From work under a Work Activity Agreement (DPČ), the employer pays social insurance if your agreed salary in the contract is higher than 2,499 CZK per month.
• Once a year, you can ask the CSSA to send you an informative personal pension insurance sheet – this will help you find out how many years of insurance are counted towards your pension.

Application

• If you want to receive a retirement pension, you need to apply. The pension application is submitted to the Czech Social Security Administration (ČSSZ) no earlier than 4 months before the requested pension. List of offices HERE.
• The pension application can be submitted 5 years in advance.
• What documents are required for the pension application can be found HERE. To apply for a pension with an international element, you must order online; you cannot apply without ordering.

Amount of pension

• The amount of pension for foreigners cannot be determined in advance, even as an approximation – there is no calculator for foreigners.
• Pensions will be reduced in the future, which is why the state supports pension savings – it is recommended that citizens save for their pension themselves.
• After becoming entitled to an old-age pension, you can work and thereby increase your future pension.
• Pensions for self-employed persons may be lower because the calculated minimum advances are lower than those paid by the employer for employees.

2) Early retirement

The conditions for entitlement to early retirement are:

1. Sufficient insurance period – from 2024 it is 40 years including replacement periods
2. Retirement age

• If you are eligible for regular retirement later than 63 years of age, you can retire at any time after the age of 60.
• If you are entitled to an old-age pension at 63 years of age, you can retire early up to 3 years earlier.
• The period of early retirement is gradually extended up to 5 years. If your retirement age is at least 63 years, you can retire 5 years earlier. However, not before reaching the age of 60.

Work and early retirement

You can earn extra money, but to a limited extent. You can only earn extra money if you are not required to pay social insurance from the money you earn.

a)  Agreement on performing work – earnings up to 10,000 CZK per month,

b)  Agreement on low-income work,

c)  Business with low profit,

d)  Occasional activity with low income,

e)  Rental.

---

• Early retirement can be interrupted and even then it is possible to work to a greater extent, when social insurance is paid (e.g. employment contract, higher earnings under an employment agreement, etc.). After reaching retirement age, it is possible to work indefinitely.
• Early retirement is permanently reduced – it will be lower even after we achieve the right to a regular old-age pension.
• It cannot be applied for retroactively.
• You submit the application yourself to the CSSA, contacts HERE.
• More detailed information on when it is possible to retire early can be found HERE.

3) Disability pension

If you are interested in a disability pension, you must submit an application to the relevant CSSA office. The disability pension is not granted permanently, medical check-ups are carried out depending on the severity of the health condition once every 1-3 years. The right to a disability pension ceases upon reaching the age of 65. After that, it is paid as an old-age pension.

Conditions for entitlement to a disability pension:

Acknowledged disability.

Sufficient insurance period — not required only for work accidents or occupational diseases.

• under 18 years of age – disability from youth – no insurance period required
• under 28 years of age, less than 5 years of insurance is sufficient,
• over 28 years of age, at least 5 years of insurance (during the 10 years prior to the onset of disability),
• over 38 years of age, 10 years of insurance during the last 20 years prior to the onset of disability.

You are younger than 65 years old and on the date of disability you do not qualify for an old-age pension or are not of retirement age.

Degrees of disability

1st degree – decrease in working capacity by at least 35%

2nd degree – decrease in working capacity by at least 50%

3rd degree – decrease in working capacity by at least 70%

Application

Podáváte sami na ČSSZ, kontakty k dispozici ZDE. K prokázání invalidity je třeba doložit Posudek o zdravotním stavu, který provádí posudkový lékař ČSSZ. Co je třeba doložit k žádosti, naleznete ZDE.

You apply to the CSSA yourself, contact details are available HERE. To prove disability, you must provide a Health Report, which is carried out by a CSSA medical examiner. You can find out what you need to provide with your application HERE.

Employment and disability pension

1st and 2nd disability degrees

• You need to earn extra money – the period of receiving such a pension is not included in social insurance and therefore does not count towards the period required for entitlement to a retirement pension.
• The amount of extra income is not limited – you need to be aware of your limitations, i.e. if your working capacity is reduced by 35%, your working hours should also be reduced proportionately. The Social Security Administration takes this into account when reviewing your disability.
• If you are unemployed, it is advisable to register with the Social Security Administration or sign up for voluntary pension insurance.

3rd degree disability pension

• The period is partially counted towards the insurance period required for entitlement to a pension.
• The amount of additional income is not limited – you must be aware of your limitations. PSSA takes this into account when reviewing your disability.

Amount

• It consists of two components: a basic assessment and a percentage assessment
• The disability pension cannot be increased – it is calculated from income before it is received.

4) Widow’s pension

You are entitled to a widow’s or widower’s pension if your spouse has died. The entitlement lasts for one year.

Temporary widow’s pension

Paid for one year. You will meet the conditions for entitlement to a widow’s/widower’s pension if your spouse died at a time when:

• Received an old-age pension,
• received a disability pension,
• at the time of death, the spouse was entitled to an old-age or disability pension,
• died as a result of an accident,
• was entitled to early retirement.

Permanent widow’s pension

You are entitled to it if you meet the conditions for a temporary widow’s/widower’s pension and at the same time:

• You are caring for a dependent child,
• you are caring for a parent who lives with you in the household,
• you are fully disabled,
• you have reached retirement age for old-age pension or at least retirement age for widow’s pension – the retirement age for permanent widow’s/widower’s pension is 4 years lower than the retirement age.

It can be paid out five years in retrospect.

An application must be submitted to the CSSA.

This pension does not restrict gainful employment in any way.

Entitlement to the pension ends if you remarry, on the day of the new marriage. This must be reported to the CSSA!

5) Orphan’s pension

Entitlement to an orphan’s pension arises if the following 2 conditions are met:

• This is a dependent child whose parent, adoptive parent or other caregiver has died.
• The parent, adoptive parent or caregiver either a) was receiving an old-age or disability pension on the date of death, b) died as a result of an occupational accident or illness, or c) had at least 1 year of gainful employment insurance on the date of death, or at least 2 years in the case of a person over 38 years of age.

Dependent child = a child until the end of compulsory schooling and further if he/she is systematically preparing for a future profession. Up to the age of 26 at the latest.

A child who receives a third-degree disability pension is not considered a dependent child and is not entitled to an orphan’s pension. An application for an orphan’s pension is submitted to the CSSA. More information can be found HERE. Information on what needs to be provided can be found HERE.