Getting divorced or terminating your registered partnership
These situations affect your own old-age pension and the partner’s pension of your ex-partner. The division of the old-age pension is regulated. The regulations are laid down in the ‘Equalisation of Pension Rights in the Event of a Divorce Act (Wet verevening pensioenrechten bij scheiding)’. These regulations apply to divorce and to the termination of a registered partnership.
That Act regulates two things:
- Your former partner will be entitled to half of the old-age pension you accrued together during your marriage/registered partnership. We also refer to this as ‘equalisation’.
- Your ex-partner is entitled to part of the partner’s pension. This is called a ‘special partner’s pension’. It is the part of the partner’s pension that was insured during your marriage/registered partnership. You can read more on this here.
What must you do ...
... For your old-age pension
Report your divorce to your pension administrator within two years. And send us the completed form “Notification of separation relating to division of old-age pension” (Mededelingsformulier in verband met verdeling van ouderdomspensioen bij scheiding). You can find this form on the central government website.
You may be able to agree on a different division of the old-age pension than the one provided by law. In that case, you will make arrangements with your ex-partner. These arrangements will most likely be recorded in a divorce settlement. You communicate these arrangements to us by sending us a copy of the divorce settlement through your personal pension portal or by e-mail. Even then, we need you to provide us with a completed form “Notification of separation relating to division of old-age pension”.
... For the special partner’s pension
If you live in the Netherlands, you won’t have to do anything. In that case, we will be notified automatically by the municipality in which you live. Do you live abroad? If so, please send us a copy of the official document stating that your marriage or registered partnership has ended.
Your ex-partner might not want a special partner’s pension. In that case, we would like to receive a copy of the divorce settlement or a signed statement from your ex-partner stating that they would not like to receive a special partner’s pension.
You find a new partner
In that case, there are two situations in which your ex-partner’s choice matters:
Situation 1:
Your ex-partner doesn’t want a special partner’s pension. In this situation, your new partner will receive a full partner’s pension after you pass away.
Situation 2:
Your ex-partner does want to receive a special partner’s pension. In this situation, your new partner will not receive as much partner’s pension compared to situation 1. They will receive the partner’s pension minus your ex-partner’s special partner’s pension.