AHV Contribution Gap Filling: Who Qualifies and What You Get

This scheme allows individuals to pay for missing years of social security contributions to ensure their future pension is not reduced.

👤Who it's for

This scheme is designed for anyone who has gaps in their official work history. If there are periods in your life where you were not working or were self-employed without making the required social security contributions, you may have gaps in your record. These gaps can prevent you from receiving the full amount of pension you are entitled to when you reach retirement age.

🎁What you get

The primary benefit of this scheme is the ability to reach your full pension entitlement at retirement. By making these payments, you ensure that your pension is calculated based on a complete history of contributions rather than a shortened one. This helps prevent a permanent reduction in your monthly pension payments once you stop working.

💰What it costs you

Using this scheme is not free. It requires you to make back-payments for the missing years identified in your record. The cost involves paying the social security contributions that should have been made during those specific periods of your work history. You will need to pay these amounts to bring your record up to date.

⚠️The catch to know

There is a strict time limit on how far back you can look to fix your record. You can only fill gaps that occurred within 5 years of the missing year. This means you cannot go back decades to fix old errors; you must act relatively quickly to ensure those specific years are covered.

📝How to apply

1. Obtain your official contribution record to see exactly where any gaps exist in your history.
2. Verify the specific years that are missing to ensure they fall within the allowed timeframe.
3. Contact the official social insurance office to request a calculation of the required back-payments.
4. Arrange for the payment of these contributions to ensure your record is updated correctly.