Old-age pension

Persons who have reached 65 years of age and whose insurance period is at least 20 years are entitled to receive the old age pension.

Early retirement 

The pension can be requested early, that ir, two years before reaching the age required for the old- age pension, provided that the insurance period is at least 30 years. The early retirement age is 63 years.

If a person is employed, an early granted old age pension is not paid. However, once a person has reached the general retirement age, they may work and receive the full amount of the old- age pension simultaneously.

For persons who have been granted the old-age pension early, 50% of the granted old- age pension is paid until the relevant retirement age is reached.

After a person has chosen to claim the pension early, the old- age pension is not granted again upon reaching the general retirement age.

Retirement system in Latvia allows persons in several cases to retire before reaching the statutory retirement age.

A parent or guardian of a child may claim the old-age pension five years earlier if their insurance period is at least 25 years and, before the child reaches 18 years of age, they have met one of the following conditions for at least eight years:

1. They have cared for five or more children;
2. They have cared for a child whose disability has been confirmed for at least years.

Persons who participated in mitigating the consequences of the Chernobyl nuclear clean-up are entitled to request old-age pension five years earlier (from 60 years of age).

To determine entitlement to the old-age pension under preferential terms for employment in particularly harmful and heavy working conditions prior to 1996, the lists that defined qualifying plants, occupations, and professions (Lists No.1 and No.2, approved by Resolution No.1173 of the Council of Ministers of the USSR on 22 August 1956) are used until the entry into force of the Law “On State Pensions”.

Under the Law “On State Pensions”, the following persons are entitled to claim the old- age pension on preferential terms for  employment in particularly harmful conditions:

* As of1July of each subsequent year, the pension eligibility age increasesd by six months until the retirement age of 63 years is reached.

Persons who were politically repressed may claim the old-age pension from 60 years of age, provided that their insurance period is at least 30 years. 

The old-age pension is calculated by taking into account the person’s:
•    accumulated pension capital during the time period from 1 January 1996 until the month when the pension is granted;
•    average wage subject to insurance contributions from 1996 to 1999 (inclusive);
•    insurance period accumulated until 31 December 1995;
•    time period in years, for which the old - age pension payment is projected, calculated from the year the pension is granted.

Basic formula for calculating the old-age pension:

Where:

P the annual pension amount, one twelfth of which is paid as the monthly pension;

K the insured person’s accumulated pension capital. It consists of the insurance contributions recorded in the person’s individual account plus annual capital growth;

G the time period in years for which old-age pension payments are projected, starting from the year the pension is granting.

During the transition period (for persons with employments periods prior to1996), the following formula is applied for calculating the old-age pension:

This formula includes an additional index Ks, which is the initial pension capital calculated follows: Ks=Vi x As x 0.2

Where:

As – the person’s insurance period accumulated until 1995 (inclusive);

Vi – the person’s average wage subject to insurance contributions  from 1996 to 1999.

The above formula applies to persons whose employment period began before 1996. 

The pension is granted and calculated individually for each person based on: the starting pension capital (calculated from the person’s employment period prior to 1996 and the average wage subject to social insurance contributions from 1996 to 1999), the pension capital (social insurance contributions accumulated since 1 January 1996), as well as the retirement age.

If a pension is claimed by a person whose insurance period is least 30 years (including a minimum of five years accrued after 1 January 1996) and whose income was below the national average during the years  important for calculating the pension starting capital that is between 1996 and - 1999), the national average wage for that period is used instead of the individual insurance contributions wage when calculating the old-age pension.

The total pension capital (starting pension capital plus post -1996 pension capital) is updated in compliance with changes in the national average wage subject to insurance contributions. The old-age pension capital is updated by applying insurance contribution wage indices (hereinafter – capital indices) for all years following the indexed year, up to the year the pension is granted. 

During periods of strong national economic growth, when both the number of persons contributing social insurance and the wages increased, the annual capital indices applied to pension capital were  high. Conversely, in certain years, decreases in wages and in the number of contributors had a negative effect on these indices.

Amendments in the Law “On State Pensions” came into force on 1 January 2016. These provided that for the years 2009-2011 the set negative capital index (that is, index with a value under 1)  is replaced with the value “1” and  subsequent-capital indices are adjusted further until the cumulative multiplication of negative and  positive capital indices exceeds “1”. If the multiplication of negative and subsequent positive capital indices of previous years is greater than „1”, the resulting capital indexi used to update pension capital. 

The basis for calculating the minimum old-age pension in 2026 is 213.00 EUR, and 255.00 EUR for persons with disabilities since childhood. The minimum old-age pension amount is calculated considering the number of recorded insurance years by , applying a coefficient 1.2 to the minimum old-age pension basis and increasing the pension by 2% of the minimum pension basis for each  additional insurance year exceeding the required minimum insurance period for granting the old age pension (currently  20 years).

The minimum old-age pension amounts are as follows:

Since 1 January 1996, the insurance record is verified using insurance contributions data collected by the State Social Insurance Agency (SSIA).

The insurance record includes employment and equivalent periods accrued until 31 December 1995.

Insurance record until 31 December 1990

Until 31 December 1990, the insurance record includes work periods accrued in the territory of Latvia and equivalent credited periods, as well as periods accrued outside Latvia (as referred to in clauses 1, 2, and 10), provided that EU Regulation No. 883/2004 or an international agreement approved by the Parliament was not in force in the respective territory. For persons whose insurance record in Latvia after 1 January 1996 is at least 20 years, periods accrued in the territory of the former Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) and equivalent credited periods are also included, provided that EU Regulation No. 883/2004 or an international agreement approved by the Parliament was not in force in the respective territory.

For foreign nationals, stateless persons, and non-citizens of Latvia, the insurance record includes employment periods accrued in the territory of Latvia and equivalent credited periods, as well as periods accrued outside Latvia (as referred to in clause 10), provided that EU Regulation No. 883/2004 or an international agreement approved by the Parliament was not in force in the respective territory. For persons in these categories whose insurance record in Latvia after 1 January 1996 is at least 20 years, periods of employment accrued in the territory of the former USSR (as referred to in clauses 4 and 5), and equivalent credited periods, are also included, provided that EU Regulation No. 883/2004 or an international agreement approved by the Parliament was not in force in the respective territory.

Insurance periods accrued until 31 December 1990 (or, in specific   cases as referred to in clause 11 below,  until 31 December 1995) are assimilated to the following employment periods:     

1. mandatory active military service in the Armed Forces of the USSR, including alternative (labour-based) service;
2. service in the Army of the Republic of Latvia (and, for Latvian citizens, also service in the Armed Forces of the USSR);
3. service as rank- and- file personnel or unit- commanding personnel in internal affairs institutions, excluding the Committee for State Security;
4. study at institutions of higher education ,or other post-secondary educational institutions up to five years for programmes officially specified as lasting no more than five years, and up to six years for programmes officially specified as lasting longer than five years;
5. full time doctoral studies for up to three years, as well as periods of post-graduate training and professional qualification advancement;
6. individual labour activity;
7. care provided to a Group I disabled person or a child  with a disability (until 16 years of age), or a person aged 80 years or older;
8. the period during which a mother raised a childuntil 8 years of age;
9. paid employment in religious organisations;
10. time spent by a politically repressed person in places of imprisonment, deportation, or exile,including time spent escaping from such places (incl. outside the territory of the former USSR) is to be multiplied by thecoefficient of 3; if this time was spent in the Far North orequivalent territories, the multiplication coefficient is 5;
11. periods during which an insured person was recognised as disabled and not employed,credited up to the statutory old-age pension eligibility age;
12. employment as a collective farm (kolkhoz)  member from the age of 16.

Insurance periods accrued before 31 December 1991 are not valid if they have already been used to calculate a pension granted by another country.

Insurance record from 1 January 1991 to 31 December 1995

From 1 January 1991 to 31 December 1995, the insurance record consists of the following employment and equivalent periods in Latvia:

1. employment (excluding work performed as a self-employed person);
2. mandatory active military service or alternative service in the Armed Forces of the USSR;
3. service in the Army of the Republic of Latvia (and,, for Latvian citizens, also service in the Armed Forces of the USSR);
4. service as rank-and-file personnel or unit-commanding personnel in internal affairs institutions, excluding the Committee for State Security.

Note:

The periods outlined in clauses 1 - 4 are included in the insurance record provided that social insurance contributions were paid or were required.      

1. self-employment;
2. study at institutions of higher education or other post-secondary educational institutions;
3. postgraduate training or qualification advancement
4. care provided to a Group I disabled person or a child with a disability (until 16 years of age), or a person aged 80 years or older;
5. the period during which a mother raised a child until 8 years of age;

Note: The periods outlined in clauses 5 - 9 are only included in the insurance record, provided that the social insurance contributions were paid directly by the person and verified by the SSIA

10. periods during which the person was recognised as disabled and not employed (credited up to the statutory old-age pension eligibility age), supported by official documentation.

To prove insurance periods,a personmust submit documents, such as:employment records, employment contracts, documents verifying employment contract fulfilment, , archivale transcripts,, military service certificates, and other official records. The requirements for acceptable evidence are specified in the Cabinet of Ministers Regulations No. 165, "Procedures for Producing Evidence Calculation and Registration of Periods of Insurance" (dated: 23 April 2002).

From 1 January 2006 to 31 December 2011, recipients of old-age pensions who were residing in Latvia or in European Economic Area (EEA) Member States were granted a supplement for each year of their insurance period accrued up to 31 December 1995, provided that those periods were taken into account when granting or recalculating the pension.

For old-age pensions granted between 2012 and 2028, supplements for insurance periods accrued up to 31 December 1995 are being gradually restored and awarded between 2024 and 2029.

Supplements are awarded in the following order:

1. In 2024 – to persons who retired in 2012, 2013, or 2014;.
2. In 2025 – to persons who retired in 2015, 2016, or 2017;

In 2026 – to persons  who retired in 2018, 2019, or 2020;

3. In 2027 – to persons  who retired in 2021, 2022, or 2023;
4. In 2028 – to persons  who retired in  2024, 2025, or 2026;
5. In 2029 – to persons  who retired in 2027 or 2029.

Persons with disabilities who previously received disability pensions with supplements for insurance periods accrued up to 31 December 1995, and who were later granted the old-age pension after 1 January 2012 instead of the disability pension, remain entitled to a supplement to their old-age pensions for the duration of their disability.

Supplements are paid simultaneously with the old-age pensions.

Pension amounts are recalculated through the process of pension indexation. Under the Law “On State Pensions”, indexation is carried out once per year on 1 October, taking into account the actual consumer price index and a share of the real percentage increase in the total social insurance contribution wage.

For the following groups, the entire pension amount is indexed, regardless of its size:

• Politically repressed persons;
• Persons with Group I disabilities;
• Participants involved in the liquidation of the consequences of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant accident;
• Persons granted the old-age pension on reduced terms due to caring for and raising a child with a disability, or five or more children.

For all other recipients, only part of the pension is indexed, specifically up to the average contribution wage of the previous year. A higher share of the real increase in the total social insurance contribution wage is applied to old-age pensions, depending on the length of the insurance period and, where applicable, employment in hazardous or particularly hazardous and heavy working conditions, as follows:

• 50% - if the insurance period is up to 29 years (inclusive);
• 60% - if the insurance period is between 30 and 39 years (inclusive), as well as to pensions awarded for work in hazardous and heavy or particularly hazardous and  heavy working conditions;
• 70% - if the insurance period is between 40 and 44 years (inclusive);
• 80% - if the insurance period is 45 years or more.

Since 1 October 2019, the pension supplement granted for each year of the insurance period accumulated until 31 December 1995 is indexed based on the actual consumer price index and 50% of the real percentage increase in the total social insurance contribution wage.

From 1 April 2026, the State Social Insurance Agency (SSIA) will automatically recalculate the pension if social insurance contributions have been paid for periods following the granting or previous recalculation of the old-age pension.

Automatic pension recalculation may occur no earlier than 12 months after the previous pension recalculation, or no earlier than  12 months after the pension was granted, counted from the first day of the month following the month in which the pension was initially granted. If the recipient wishes for the pension to be recalculated from a different date, they must submit an application indicating the first day of the month from which the pension hould be automatically recalculated. The first automatic pension recalculation will take place on 1 April 2026, and annually thereafter.

Until 31 March 2026, the SSIA will continue to convert pensions based on individual application. A pension may be recalculated once a year, irrespective of the number of months the person has worked.

The recalculated old-age pension consists of the pension amount previously granted and the additional pension amount calculated based on pension capital accumulated after the pension was granted.

At the recipient’s request, the State Social Insurance Agency (SSIA) may transfer the pension to an account at a Latvian credit institution, the Postal Settlement System (PNS), or deliver it to the recipient’s place of residence. Pension delivery to the recipient’s place of residence is provided by SAS Latvijas pasts for a fee of EUR 2.39, which the SSIA deducts from the pension amount payable.

If a pension recipient leaves Latvia to reside permanently in a foreign country, the pension granted in the Republic of Latvia may continue to be transferred to their personal bank account in Latvia, or an account at a foreign bank or credit institution that accepts euro (EUR) payments

To strengthen public awareness of social guarantees and  trust in the social security system, everyone should familiarize themselves with their rights and obligations in the field of social security.

Latvian citizens who are legally employed in any European Union (EU) Member State may join that country’s social security system and access its guarantees. They have the same rights and obligations in the area of social security as citizens of the respective country.

The social security system covers various risks associated with the loss of income, including, old-age, disability, loss of a supporter, illness, work-related injury,  occupational diseases, unemployment, and  reimbursements and allowances for families with children.

When Latvian citizens move to reside permanently in another EU Member State, they do not lose their rights to pensions and certain benefits previously granted in Latvia. These payments may continue to bee transferred to the person’s chosen bank account in any EU/EEA Member State, in accordance with the principle of pension and benefit export.

If a Latvian citizen has worked in multiple EU Member States, they are entitled to receive a pension from each of thoese countries. Each country calculates and pays its portion of the pension according to national law and based on the period the person was insured there. If a person has not been employed long enough in one EU Member State to meet that country’s minimum qualifying period for a pension, employment periods in other EU Member States will be taken into consideration.

For instance,to qualify for a pension in Latvia, a person must have an insurance record of at least 20 years. If a person has worked 7 years in Latvia and 19 years in Belgium, both periods are aggregated when applying for a pension in Latvia. Latvia will grant a pension only for the 7 years of insurance accrued in Latvia. Belgium will grant a pension for the 19 years of insurance accrued in Belgium.  

If a person believes that an EU employment period has not been fully recognised, (for instance, certain contribution periods were not  taken into consideration), they may contact the State Social Insurance Agency (SSIA) for assistance to resolve the issue.

Additional information on pension export is available at SSIA website: https://www.vsaa.gov.lv/en/services-european-union.

Information exchange between Member State institutions is organized using E-forms. Some of these forms are also issued to the person directly. The forms required to exercise social security rights can be obtained from the SSIA. 

Before beginning employment in another Member State, individuals should review official information on the employment and social security conditions of the respective country.

Further information on movement within the European Union is available (here. Mutual Information System on Social Protection (MISSOC) summaries on employment rights and social security systems in EU/EEA Member States are available here.

Funeral benefits

In the event of the death of a pension recipient, a funeral benefit equal to two monthly pensions (including any supplement granted for insurance periods accrued until 31 December 1995) is paid to the recipient’s family or to the person who has undertaken responsibility for arranginge the funeral. The benefit must be claimed within six months from the  date of death of the pension recipient.

Surviving spouse's benefit

In the event of death of a pension recipient, the surviving spouse is entitled to a benefit equal to 50% of the pension granted to the deceased spouse, including any pension supplement for insurance periods accrued before 31 December 1995, calculated in accordance with the Law “On State Pensions" ["Par valsts pensijām"]. 

Entitlement to the benefit applies for 12 months from the date of the pension recipient’s death, provided that the application is submitted within six months of the date of death.

If the application is submitted later than six months after the date of death, entitlement to the benefit begins not earlier than six months before the date of submission and continues not longer than 12 months after the date of the pension recipient’s death..

A surviving spouse is entitled to this benefit if all of the following criteria are met:

• the marriage was officially registered and valid on the date of the pension recipient’s death; 
• the deceased spouse was a recipient of an old-age, disability, survivor's, or service pension under Ddecision No. 104 "Regulations on retirement pensions" ["Nolikums par izdienas pensijām"] orDecision No. 34 "On the Regulations on Pensions of Employees of Ordinary and Commanding Staff of the Interior Institutions (Employer's Pensions)" ["Par Nolikumu par iekšlietu iestāžu ierindas un komandējošā sastāva darbinieku pensijām (darba devēja pensijām)"];
• on the date of the deceased person’s death, the surviving spouse was already receiving a Latvian national old-age, disability, service, or special state pension.

An application to receivef the benefit may be submitted to any SSIA customer service centre in one of the following ways:

• in person;
• electronically, in a format compliant with national regulations on electronic document authentication; 
• by post, including submission by an authorized representative;
• through the national service portal www.latvija.lv, by completing an electronic application [“E-iesniegums”].

An identity document must be presented when claiming the benefit.

The benefit is paid to the bank account specified by the beneficiary in an account at a Latvian credit institution, an account in the Postal Settlement System (PNS), or delivered to the beneficiary’s place of residence for a fee.