Retirement age for women in Germany: same limits, different paths
Germany no longer has a separate retirement age for women. Differences come from insured years, above all from periods credited for children.
Worked through by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · How we calculate
Pension from raising children
Pension a month
€233.77
| Pension points | 5.50 |
| Per child before 1992 | €106.26 |
| Per child from 1992 | €127.51 |
The periods go to one parent, usually the mother unless the parents declared otherwise.
Women in Germany now face the same pension ages as men. The former old-age pension for women (Altersrente für Frauen) remains only for those born before 1952; every later cohort has the same standard retirement age (Regelaltersgrenze), 67 from the 1964 cohort (section 35 SGB VI), and the same early pensions: after 35 years from 63 with a reduction, after 45 years unreduced from 65, and with a severe disability from 62. Differences come through insured years. Child-raising counts twice: as contribution periods for the amount, 36 months for a child born from 1992 and 30 months for an earlier child, each month worth 0.0833 pension points, and as credited periods (Berücksichtigungszeiten) up to the child’s tenth birthday for the 45 years. At the pension value of €42.52, a child born from 1992 adds €127.51 a month, a child born before 1992 €106.26. Born on 15 June 1966, you can retire with 35 years from 1 July 2029, and with 45 years unreduced from 1 July 2031.
One set of age limits for everyone
For a long time Germany had a separate old-age pension for women that allowed an earlier start. Today it is open only to women born before 1952 and plays no part in new pensions. Every later cohort follows the same limits as men: the standard age under section 35 and section 235 SGB VI, the pensions after 35 and after 45 years, and the pension for severely disabled persons. So if you are looking for the retirement age for women, this is the general table:
| Born | Standard age | After 35 years from 63, reduction | After 45 years, unreduced | Severe disability, unreduced |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1958 | 66 years | 10.8 % | 64 years | 64 years |
| 1960 | 66 years 4 months | 12.0 % | 64 years 4 months | 64 years 4 months |
| 1962 | 66 years 8 months | 13.2 % | 64 years 8 months | 64 years 8 months |
| 1963 | 66 years 10 months | 13.8 % | 64 years 10 months | 64 years 10 months |
| 1964 | 67 years | 14.4 % | 65 years | 65 years |
| 1970 | 67 years | 14.4 % | 65 years | 65 years |
From the 1964 cohort the values no longer change; the 1970 row stands for all later years. Every age limit and the exact first pension month for any date of birth are in the retirement age table.
Where women still end up in a different place
The age limits are the same; insurance records are not. Many women have years of child-raising, caring for relatives or part-time work on their record. That matters in two ways: whether an early pension is open at all, and how large the pension is. For the 35 years every pension-relevant period counts, including child-raising, caring and unemployment, and most people clear that bar. For the 45 years only certain periods count (section 51(3a) SGB VI), and the family years often decide whether it is enough.
Child-raising periods: what a child adds
For each child, one parent is credited with child-raising periods (Kindererziehungszeiten) as if contributions had been paid (section 56, section 249 SGB VI). For a child born from 1992 that is 36 months, for an earlier child 30. Each month earns 0.0833 pension points (section 70 SGB VI), the same as a month on average pay. These periods are what Germans informally call the Mütterrente.
| Child born | Months | Pension points | Monthly pension from July 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|
| before 1992 | 30 | 2.50 | €106.26 |
| from 1992 | 36 | 3.00 | €127.51 |
| two children, 1990 and 1994 | 66 | 5.50 | €233.77 |
The calculator above does the same sum for any number of children. It shows the gross figure; health and long-term care contributions come off it as with any pension. How pension points work is explained on pension points.
Children and the 45 years
For the unreduced pension after 45 years, the credited period for raising a child up to its tenth birthday counts, even if you did not work during that time. A mother who stayed at home for ten years after her first child therefore loses no years towards the 45. Caring periods count as well.
Two things do not count. Months from pension rights split on divorce or from pension splitting raise the pension but are not part of the 45 years. Voluntary contributions count only if there are at least 18 years of compulsory contributions. To check whether you get there, see what counts towards 45 years.
An example from the engine: a woman born on 15 June 1966 can retire with 35 years from 1 July 2029, with a 14.4 % reduction. With 45 years she can go unreduced from 1 July 2031, 24 months after the earliest date and 24 months before the standard age (section 38 SGB VI).
No reduction after 45 years
No reduction at
64 years 10 months
| Start (born in June) | 1 May 2028 |
| Standard age | 66 years 10 months |
| Months before standard age | 24 |
Current law. The commission proposes to abolish this pension; nothing has been enacted.
Part-time work after the family years
The larger gap compared with men’s pensions usually opens not during child-raising but afterwards. Returning part-time means fewer points. A year on €20,000 gross earns 0.39 pension points against the provisional 2026 average earnings, a year on €40,000 0.77. Over ten years that is 3.85 points, or €163.71 a month at today’s pension value. The German pension calculator projects your total.
Your own pension and a widow’s pension
Many women later draw a widow’s pension alongside their own. Your own pension is set against it insofar as, as net income, it exceeds the allowance (section 97 SGB VI). The allowance is 26.4 times the pension value, €1,122.53 a month from July 2026, and 40% of the excess is deducted. A higher own pension from child-raising or longer work can therefore reduce the widow’s pension in part, but on balance it always leaves you better off. The details: widow’s pension income test; large versus small widow’s pension: large and small widow’s pension.
What the reform would change about the age limits
In 2026 the pension commission (Alterssicherungskommission) proposed abolishing the 45-year pension and opening the 35-year pension only from 64. None of it is law, and no draft has been published. For a binding statement on your periods, contact the information and advice centres of the Deutsche Rentenversicherung; this site is independent. The state of the reform is on pension reform.