Social Old Age Pension
Социална пенсия за старост
Coverage
- Destitute elderly persons aged 70 or older residing in Bulgaria.
Financing
- The scheme is entirely tax-financed out of the state budget.
Administration
- The National Social Security Institute manages the scheme and the payments.
Qualifying Conditions
- Persons must be at least 70 years old.
- Persons must have no right to any other pension (including no right to a personal pension or any pension entitlement from another country).
- Benefits are means-tested: beneficiaries’ income and the annual household income must be less than the sum of the monthly guaranteed minimum income defined by law for the preceding 12 months.
Benefits
- Lifetime pension; the flat-rate amount is determined by a decision of the Council of Ministers.
- Pension benefits are not subject to income tax.
Coverage
Financing
Administration
Qualifying Conditions
Benefits
- Destitute elderly persons aged 70 or older residing in Bulgaria.
- The scheme is entirely tax-financed out of the state budget.
- The National Social Security Institute manages the scheme and the payments.
- Persons must be at least 70 years old.
- Persons must have no right to any other pension (including no right to a personal pension or any pension entitlement from another country).
- Benefits are means-tested: beneficiaries’ income and the annual household income must be less than the sum of the monthly guaranteed minimum income defined by law for the preceding 12 months.
- Lifetime pension; the flat-rate amount is determined by a decision of the Council of Ministers.
- Pension benefits are not subject to income tax.
Legal Basis: Social Security Code, Chapter 6, Section IV (Кодекс за социално осигуряване); Annual Laws on the Social Security Budget (Годишни закони за за бюджета на държавното обществено осигуряване).
Personal Pensions
Персонални пенсии
Coverage
- Mothers of numerous children and persons who have nursed a disabled family member who cannot sufficiently cover their necessary subsistence from income/assets.
Financing
- The scheme is entirely tax-financed out of the state budget.
Administration
- The territorial department of the National Social Security Institute (NSSI) receives and reviews pension applications, initiates a procedure for a decision on the granting of the pension by addressing the local municipal council and ultimately manages payments (in case of approved application).
- The local municipal council makes a proposal for granting a pension to the Minister of Labour and Social Policy.
- In case of an approval of the proposal by the Minister of Labour and Social Policy, a joint report is issued by the Minister of Labour and Social Policy and the Minister of Finance which is submitted to the Council of Ministers.
- The Council of Ministers decides on the granting of the pension.
Qualifying Conditions
- Mothers of numerous children: mother must have given birth to 5 or more children and must have raised them until they have reached 18 years of age; she must not have been deprived of parental rights/parental rights must not have been restricted; children must not have been placed in a public institution for more than a year (exception: institutionalisation due to medical reasons).
- Persons who have nursed a disabled family member: person should have taken care for more than 10 years of a seriously ill family member in need of constant attendance (family members are: spouse, as well as lineal ascendants and descendants).
- Retirement age increases to 67 until 2023 for persons born after 29/02/1956; minimum insurance periods: 3 years.
- Persons must have no right to any other pension (including no right to a social old age pension or any pension entitlement from another country).
- Persons with income/assets below subsistence levels as defined by law.
- Benefits are means-tested: beneficiaries’ income and the annual household income must be less than the sum of the monthly guaranteed minimum income defined by law for the preceding 12 months.
Benefits
- Lifetime pension; flat-rate amount equal to 90% of the amount of the social old age pension.
- Pension benefits are not subject to income tax.
Coverage
Financing
Administration
Qualifying Conditions
Benefits
- Mothers of numerous children and persons who have nursed a disabled family member who cannot sufficiently cover their necessary subsistence from income/assets.
- The scheme is entirely tax-financed out of the state budget.
- The territorial department of the National Social Security Institute (NSSI) receives and reviews pension applications, initiates a procedure for a decision on the granting of the pension by addressing the local municipal council and ultimately manages payments (in case of approved application).
- The local municipal council makes a proposal for granting a pension to the Minister of Labour and Social Policy.
- In case of an approval of the proposal by the Minister of Labour and Social Policy, a joint report is issued by the Minister of Labour and Social Policy and the Minister of Finance which is submitted to the Council of Ministers.
- The Council of Ministers decides on the granting of the pension.
- Mothers of numerous children: mother must have given birth to 5 or more children and must have raised them until they have reached 18 years of age; she must not have been deprived of parental rights/parental rights must not have been restricted; children must not have been placed in a public institution for more than a year (exception: institutionalisation due to medical reasons).
- Persons who have nursed a disabled family member: person should have taken care for more than 10 years of a seriously ill family member in need of constant attendance (family members are: spouse, as well as lineal ascendants and descendants).
- Retirement age increases to 67 until 2023 for persons born after 29/02/1956; minimum insurance periods: 3 years.
- Persons must have no right to any other pension (including no right to a social old age pension or any pension entitlement from another country).
- Persons with income/assets below subsistence levels as defined by law.
- Benefits are means-tested: beneficiaries’ income and the annual household income must be less than the sum of the monthly guaranteed minimum income defined by law for the preceding 12 months.
- Lifetime pension; flat-rate amount equal to 90% of the amount of the social old age pension.
- Pension benefits are not subject to income tax.
Legal Basis: Social Security Code, Chapter 6, Section IV (Кодекс за социално осигуряване); Ordinance on the Pensions and the Insurance Periods (Наредба за пенсиите и осигурителния стаж).