Partial revision of the AHV: elimination of unequal treatment of widows' and widowers' pensions

The survivor's pension at a glance

Survivors' pensions are intended to prevent financial hardship in the event of the loss of a spouse or parent and fall into three main categories: Widow's pensions, widower's pensions and orphan's pensions. Only widow's and widower's pensions are discussed below.

In order to be entitled to a survivor's pension, the deceased person must have been credited with contributions for at least one full contribution year. A full contribution year is deemed to exist if the deceased person either paid contributions themselves, the spouse paid at least twice the minimum contribution or child-raising or care credits can be taken into account.

The entitlement to a survivor's pension begins on the first day of the month following the death of the (divorced) spouse and ends at the end of the month in which the conditions for the pension cease to apply, as is the case, for example, in the event of remarriage.

Applicable regulation for widows

In Switzerland, married women with children are entitled to a widow's pension. Childless widows are entitled if they have reached the age of 45 and have been married for at least five years. Divorced women are entitled if the divorced marriage lasted at least ten years and there are children. Alternatively, the entitlement applies if the divorced woman was older than 45 at the time of the divorce and the marriage lasted at least ten years.

Applicable regulation for widowers

Until the above-mentioned judgement of the ECHR, married men with children only received a widower's pension until the youngest child reached the age of 18. Since this judgement, a married man with children is also paid a pension beyond this point in time. Childless married men are not entitled to a widower's pension and divorced men only receive a widower's pension if they have children who are under the age of 18. This entitlement ceases after the age of 18.

New regulation after the partial revision: equal treatment and adaptation to social reality

The aim of the revision is to correct gender inequalities in a socially responsible manner and to adapt pension entitlements to today's social reality. This includes support during a transitional phase following a death or during the care of dependent children, regardless of the gender of the parent, as well as special consideration for people who are at risk of poverty due to widowhood.

After the amendments to the law come into force, parents are entitled to a survivor's pension until the youngest child reaches the age of 25, regardless of the parents' marital status. This entitlement may extend beyond the age of 25 if an adult child with a disability is being cared for and OASI care credits exist.

For surviving dependants without (dependent) children, there is a transitional pension of two years, both for married couples and for divorced persons who received maintenance contributions from the deceased person. Additional support is granted within the framework of supplementary benefits (EL) if widows and widowers have reached the age of 58 and no longer have dependent children, provided that the death constitutes a poverty factor.

Widow's or widower's pensions that are already running when the amendment to the law comes into force will be maintained if the beneficiary has reached the age of 55 and has no dependent children. If the beneficiaries are not yet 55 years old, the pension will be cancelled after two years (transition period). This does not apply to pensions for widows and widowers who have reached the age of 50 at the time of entry into force and are simultaneously receiving supplementary benefits to the AHV and IV.