The end of the “penalty” for additional Agirc-Arrco pensions on April 1 of this year

From January 2019, all people born after 1956 who retired with all their quarterly contributions had an automatic 10% reduction applied to their supplementary pensions. Financial penalty for three years, which can last until age 67. To cancel this “fine” or avoid it, you had to work one year older than the age of majority.

The decision to abolish this penalty was made in October by the trade unions and employers’ organizations co-managing the Agirc-Arrco scheme in a new management agreement that runs until 2026. This penalty has already ceased to apply on December 1, 2023 for all new retirees. Now this provision applies to everyone. About 700 thousand people will see pension increases.

Bonus for two to four years of additional work

Since this Monday is a public holiday, pensioners “will see it in their bank account on Tuesday, April 2,” Agirc-Arrco Vice President Didier Weckner noted at the end of the week. Pensioners were informed by email and in their personal account about the “new pension amount”.

Whoever says “malus” also says “bonus”. This one, which applies to those who work an extra two to four years, will be retained for those not affected by the pension reform.

The agreement takes into account the system’s healthier financial position and the new rules introduced by the pension reform that took effect on September 1. In particular, this made it possible to revaluate pensions by 4.9% to compensate for inflation.

About 42% of new retirees have suffered a “penalty” since 2019, while 1.3% have received a bonus, according to data released by Agirc-Arrco in the fall. As a result, eliminating the “fine” would ultimately cost the regime 500 million euros annually. According to Agirc-Arrco President Brigitte Pisa, the Agirc-Arrco supplement is between 30% (for the lowest earners) and 60% (for executives) of the total pension of former private sector workers.