For many workers, it should be an important building block of old -age provision. However, taxes and social security contributions also fall on the company pension. However, restrictions apply.
If you are heading for retirement, you can often look forward to a company pension. This is supposed to improve the only narrow statutory pension. Around half of the employees in Germany acquire claims for company pension schemes.
Five ways to pension
In this country, five so -called “implementation routes” are possible: This includes direct insurance that corresponds to private pension insurance, or a direct allowance of a pension by the employer.
Pension funds and pension funds are also used to build up capital for company pensions. Large companies also often provide their own supply facility, the support fund – for the provision of employees.
Employees and employers pay
In most cases, employees pay contributions as well as employers into the reserves. These are mostly tax -privileged.
The start of the pension for the company pension is usually the same time at which the statutory pension can also be used. The standard age limit for the statutory pension in 1964 in Germany is 67 years. However, the company pension can also be obtained earlier depending on the contractual agreement.
Full burden on health and Long -term care insurance
Just like the statutory pension, the company pension is not paid “gross for net” – so there are taxes. What many retirees do not take into account in SPE: Social security contributions are also due on the company pension. These are health insurance contributions and contributions to long -term care insurance.
In principle, company pensioners have to take on the full contributions, as pension consultant Thomas Neumann explains: “You know it from working life so that you have shared the contributions to health and long-term care insurance with the employer. It is different for company pensions.”
However, there is an allowance for contributions to health insurance. This is currently around 187 euros. This allowance is based on the development of the statutory pension. Only the part of the company pension that lies above are health insurance contributions due. “But there is no allowance that is taken into account in the long -term care insurance,” added Neumann.
Demanded taxation also affects company pensions
Contributions to health and long-term care insurance are not the only burden with which company pensioners have to cope: In most cases, the company pension must also be taxed. Here the downstream taxation applies, similar to the statutory pension.
How high the tax burden fails depends in detail on the type of company pension you have saved, i.e. whether this is direct insurance or a pension fund. As a rule, however, the company pension is taxed with the personal income tax rate.
However, not the whole company pension, because here too the legislator has granted a small allowance, advisor Neumann knows. And it again depends on which year you start in the company pension: “I use the company pension in 2025, then 13.2 percent of the company pension are exempt from tax, but a maximum of 990 euros per year.” This is the so -called supply allowance. A surcharge that is currently 297 euros is granted again.
Tax loop hole “Old contract”
Only those who have a so -called “old contract” can be avoided by taxing their company pension. The Income Tax Act has created a special regulation for contracts that were concluded before 2005, said pension expert Alberto del Pozo from the pension provider Mypension: “These are contracts that could be concluded on the basis of paragraph 40b at the time. These are actually still tax-free today. If someone still has such a contract, this contract would also be paid out tax-free.”
But a condition is also linked to this tax exemption: the capital saved must be paid out in one fell swoop. Otherwise, the monthly pension payment with the so -called “earnings share” must be taxed. Depending on the retirement age, this is between 17 and 22 percent.
Advice before decision is highly recommended
“With many providers there is also the possibility of partial payment. There you can pay out about 30 percent of the capital and let 70 percent be reduced,” says Stephan Seidenfad, who advises companies on company pension schemes. “The then due taxes and social security contributions should be calculated by your insurer or employer before you make the choice.”
Before you choose a variant of the company pension or for the right time to start the pension, you should always look for technical help, Seidenfad advises: “There are many company pensioners who have made lonely decisions and then say afterwards: 'I didn't know that.”
