Skip to content

Where are you from?

Choose your province and we will tell you how the deputies and senators you elected vote, one by one.

 

We remember it in this browser. If you create an account, we keep it there.
Sign in

Type a law, a topic, a person or a province.

What it is

Pension reform: retirement age, benefit calculation and requirements

BOE step 7 of 7 · Passed

It is a government bill. Introduced by the Government. It was introduced on 25 March 2011. Introduced by: Gobierno.

Official title: Government bill on the updating, adaptation, and modernization of the Social Security system.

Follow this law

Source: Congreso de los Diputados, file 121/000120· updated 11 Nov

Automatic summary, not yet reviewed

  1. The legal retirement age becomes 67, but stays at 65 for those who can show 38 years and 6 months of contributions. The change is applied gradually between 2013 and 2027.
  2. The retirement pension will be calculated using contribution bases from the last 25 years instead of the previous 15. The extension is phased in up to 2022.
  3. Two forms of early retirement are regulated: after involuntary job loss (from age 61) and by the worker's own choice (from age 63). Both require at least 33 years of contributions, and the pension is reduced by coefficients.
  4. Top-up payments for pensions below the minimum may not exceed the amount of non-contributory retirement and disability pensions. Residing in Spain is also required to receive them.
  5. Workers aged 65 or older with enough years of contributions are exempt from paying contributions for common contingencies, except temporary disability. Two cases are set: age 65 with 38 years and 6 months, or age 67 with 37 years.
  6. Workers who have reached the legal retirement age may take partial retirement without a relief contract. When a relief contract is used, the new worker's contribution base may not be below 65% of the partial retiree's.
  7. A sustainability factor is introduced: from 2027, and every 5 years, the system's key parameters will be reviewed based on changes in life expectancy at age 67.
  8. Contribution gaps due to the birth, adoption or foster care of a child under 6 will count as contribution time, with 112 days per child, rising to up to 270 days by 2019.

Who it affects

  • Employees and self-employed workers: Their retirement age, pension calculation and rules for early and partial retirement change.
  • Pensioners with low pensions: Top-up payments to reach the minimum have new limits and require residence in Spain.
  • Mothers and fathers: Periods without contributions due to child care count as contribution time for pension purposes.
  • People with disabilities: They may retire early at 56 in the cases provided, and a special agreement is regulated for those with special difficulties entering the labor market.
  • Domestic workers: Their special scheme is integrated into the General Social Security scheme from 2012, with a special contribution system.

Words worth knowing

Base reguladora (regulatory base)
The amount resulting from contribution bases over a set period, used to calculate the pension.
Coeficiente reductor (reduction coefficient)
A percentage subtracted from the pension when someone retires before the legal age.
Contrato de relevo (relief contract)
A contract with an unemployed person to cover the hours freed up by a worker taking partial retirement.
Pensión no contributiva (non-contributory pension)
A pension for people without enough income, even if they have not contributed enough.
Contingencias comunes (common contingencies)
Ordinary risks such as illness or retirement, as opposed to workplace accidents and occupational diseases.

It summarizes the law as published in the BOE. It is written by artificial intelligence and may contain mistakes: the official text is what counts. Read the official text · How we make summaries

Where it stands

How far did it get?

It took 7 of 7 steps. It reached BOE, and today it is passed.

  1. Introduced25 March 2011Someone registers the text in the Congreso.
  2. Admitted29 March 2011The Bureau of the Congreso accepts it and, for a members’ bill, the plenary decides whether to consider it.
  3. Amendments1 April 2011Groups propose changes.
  4. Committee11 May 2011A committee goes through the text in detail.
  5. Plenaryno dateAll 350 deputies vote.
  6. Senate27 June 2011The Senate can pass it, amend it or veto it.
  7. BOE21 July 2011It is published in the Official State Gazette (BOE) and comes into force.
See the 11 official steps on a timeline
Mar 2011Apr 2011May 2011Jun 201111. 25 March 2011: Presentación22. 29 March 2011: Comisión de Trabajo e Inmigración Publicación desde 29/03/2011 hasta 01/04/201133. 29 March 2011: Calificación44. 1 April 2011: Comisión de Trabajo e Inmigración Enmiendas desde 01/04/2011 hasta 10/06/201155. 11 May 2011: Comisión de Trabajo e Inmigración Mesa - Calificación desde 11/05/2011 hasta 11/05/201166. 11 May 2011: Comisión de Trabajo e Inmigración Debate de totalidad desde 11/05/2011 hasta 26/05/201177. 10 June 2011: Comisión de Trabajo e Inmigración Informe desde 10/06/2011 hasta 22/06/201188. 22 June 2011: Comisión de Trabajo e Inmigración Aprobación con competencia legislativa plena desde 22/06/2011 hasta 27/06/201199. 27 June 2011: Senado desde 27/06/2011 hasta 13/07/20111010. 13 July 2011: Pleno Enmiendas o veto del Senado desde 13/07/2011 hasta 21/07/20111111. 21 July 2011: Concluido - (Aprobado con modificaciones) desde 21/07/2011 hasta 11/10/2011

Was there a plenary vote?

We have no plenary vote linked to this law in the Congreso’s data.

What happens next

What happens now?

It is law, or will be once published in the BOE. It comes into force on the date its own text sets.

The same initiative in the other chamber:

Published in the BOE: Law 27/2011, of 1 August, on the updating, adaptation and modernization of the Social Security system.

Sources

Where does all this come from?

  • The data comes from the open files of the Congreso, the Senate and the BOE, unaltered.
  • Each deputy’s province is the one of their seat on the day of the vote.
  • We only say “passed” or “rejected” when the majority needed is certain; otherwise we say which side had more votes.

Read the full method · Report an error