Old-age and early old-age pension

Guide to old-age and early old-age pensions

1. 1

   Check the entitlement conditions

   An old-age pension provides income in old age. An early old-age pension is intended mainly for people who can no longer work but have not yet reached retirement age.

   Entitlement to an old-age pension

   You are entitled if you:

   • have completed at least 15 years of pension insurance, and at the same time
   • have reached retirement age.

    

   Entitlement to an early old-age pension

   You are entitled if you:

   • have completed at least 15 years of pension insurance,
   • have no more than two years remaining until retirement age, or have completed the required number of years worked,
   • the pension amount is higher than 1.6 times the subsistence minimum. The combined early old-age pension from the Social Insurance Agency and the second pillar must also exceed 1.6 times the subsistence minimum for one adult.

   The following also applies:

   • on the date of application, you must not be subject to compulsory pension 
     insurance, for example as an employee or self-employed person,
   • entitlement arises no earlier than the application date.

   Good to know
   If you are granted an early pension:

   • it automatically becomes an old-age pension when you reach retirement age,
   • you cannot apply for a new old-age pension.

   More information about entitlement to and payment of an early old-age pension is available on the Social Insurance Agency Opens in a new windowwebsite.

2. 2

   Calculating retirement age

   Retirement age depends on:

   • your year of birth,
   • the number of children you have raised.

   You can find your exact retirement age in the Retirement Age Table.Opens in a new window

    

   When you will learn your retirement age

   • your retirement age will be determined no later than five years in advance,
   • it is set by the Ministry of Labour, Social Affairs and Family of the Slovak Republic.

    

   Reduction of retirement age

   • retirement age is reduced by six months for each child raised,
   • by no more than 18 months in total,
   • if care cannot be credited to the woman for objective reasons, it may be credited to the man.

    

   Good to know
   More information about the required period worked is available here: How to apply for an early old-age pension.Opens in a new window

    

3. 3

   Claim your old-age or early old-age pension

   From 1 August 2026, you can also apply electronically for an old-age or early old-age pension. The electronic application is pre-filled with available information, so you enter only a minimum of data. The Social Insurance Agency processes the application automatically and informs you of the status of the proceedings.

   Claim your pension

   You must apply in order to receive a pension.

   • electronically

   You may submit an application for an old-age or early old-age pension:

   through the Social Insurance Agency's eServices. Open the link and complete the form here: Old-age Pension ApplicationOpens in a new window

   • in person

   Your pension application is prepared in person at a Social Insurance Agency branch; you do not need a form.

   You can book an appointment in advance here: Appointment System for Preparing a Pension Opens in a new windowApplication.

    

   Good to know
   More information about the electronic application is available here: Submitting an Old-age Pension ApplicationOpens in a new window.

   Before applying for an early old-age pension

   We recommend checking:

   • your completed pension insurance periods,
   • the indicative pension amount.

   You can do this at a branch or through your Insuree’s Electronic Account.Opens in a new window

   Your indicative pension amount, expected retirement age and pension insurance record are available in your Insuree’s Electronic Account. The information is calculated automatically using data available to the Social Insurance Agency.

4. Prepare the documents

   Basic documents

   • a valid identity document,  either an identity card or passport,
   • education documents,
   • employment and income documents, if they are not already recorded.

    

   Additional documents depending on your situation

   You may also need:

   • military service documents, if you are a man,
   • confirmation of employment abroad,
   • documents relating to children, such as birth certificates or custody decisions.
   • Depending on your situation, you may need other documents as well.

    

   Warning: Depending on your situation, you may need additional documents. A Social Insurance Agency branch employee will advise you. The complete list is also available here: What documents do I need to prepare an old-age pension application?Opens in a new window

   For an electronic application, you do not need to submit confirmations already available to the Social Insurance Agency in public registers. These mainly include employment, income, children, military service and bank account ownership information.

   Pension payment

   If you want your pension paid into an account:

   • bring the completed form Payment of Pension Benefits into the Pensioner's Bank Account, confirmed by the Opens in a new windowbank.

   From 1 August 2026, the Social Insurance Agency verifies bank account ownership electronically. You no longer need bank confirmation if the account is in your name.

    

   Remember: As a pensioner, you must report any change to the information in your pension application to the Social Insurance Agency within eight days.

5. Pension decision process

   Decision deadline

   • the Social Insurance Agency usually decides within 60 days,
   • the time limit starts on the date the application is prepared.

    

   How you will receive the decision
   The decision will be sent to you: by post, or to your eMailbox (if activated).How you receive the decision

   The decision will be delivered:

   • by post, or
   • to your electronic mailbox, if activated.

   From 1 August 2026, you can also view the status of the pension proceedings in your Electronic Insured Person Account. Once delivered, the decision is also available electronically on the Social Insurance Agency portal.

    

   If you disagree with the decision

   You may appeal:

   • within 30  days of receiving the decision,
   • at the Social Insurance Agency branch that issued it.

   From 1 August 2026, you may also appeal electronically through the Social Insurance Agency eServices portal by completing the Appeal against a Social Insurance Agency Decision form, Opens in a new windowor through Slovensko.sk. The form is pre-filled with information from your application, and a copy is stored in your electronic mailbox after submission.

   You may first request an explanation of the decision. A new 30-day appeal period then begins on the date the explanation is delivered.

    

   What happens after an appeal

   • the appeal is decided by the Director General of the Social Insurance Agency,
   • no further appeal may be lodged against that decision,
   • you may apply to a court within two months of receiving the decision.
6. 4

   Find out about pension amounts and the second and third pillars

   Where to apply

   You may apply for a second-pillar pension:

   • at the pension asset management company with which you have an old-age pension savings agreement, or
   • at the Social Insurance Agency branch responsible for your permanent residence.

    

   Important information: If you are not yet receiving an early pension from the first pillar:

   • you may apply for an early second-pillar pension only through the Social Insurance Agency.

    

   How the process works

   1. you submit an application,
   2. the pension asset management company with which you have an agreement issues a certificate of the amount saved,
   3. the Social Insurance Agency sends you pension offers on the following day.
   4. You select the delivery method in your application.

    

   Forms of second-pillar pension
   An old-age or early old-age pension from old-age pension savings may be paid as:

   • a lifelong pension,
   • a temporary pension,
   • a programmed withdrawal.

   Third pillar

   Supplementary pension savings are voluntary.

   Your savings are managed by supplementary pension companies.

    

   What it is for

   Saving may provide:

   • supplementary income in old age,
   • income after you stop performing hazardous work.

    

   How saving works

   During the saving period

   • you pay contributions yourself or your employer pays them for you,
   • you may select one or more funds.

   If you perform hazardous work:

   • your employer pays contributions from the first day,
   • you may contribute yourself, but you are not required to.

    

   After the saving period

   • the pension is paid under the terms of your agreement,
   • the benefit amount also depends on when the agreement was concluded and how the benefit plan is set.

   How to request payment

   • submit the application to the supplementary pension company with which you have an agreement.
7. Find out more about the parental pension

   The parental pension was a benefit that could be received in addition to an old-age pension.

   It was abolished from 1 January 2025.

   What replaced it

   It was replaced by:

   • allocation of a share of income tax paid.

   The Social Insurance Agency will transfer this share for the first time in 2026, for 2025.

8. 5

   Working while receiving a pension and other benefits

   Old-age pension

   As an old-age pension recipient, you may:

   • work full-time or part-time,
   • work under an agreement,
   • run a business, for example as a sole trader.

    

   Early old-age pension

   You may work, but only under these conditions:

   • only under an agreement,
   • you must ask your employer to apply the contribution relief,
   • your income must not exceed EUR 2,400 per year.

    

   Contributions and benefits

   As a working pensioner:

   • you may claim a deductible item of EUR 200 per month when working under an agreement,
   • you do not pay invalidity insurance or unemployment insurance contributions.

    

   Pension increase

   If you pay pension insurance contributions while working:

   the Social Insurance Agency automatically recalculates your pension every year. You do not need to apply; by 31 March each year it recalculates the old-age pension as of 1 January for pension insurance periods completed in the previous calendar year,

   • or you may apply for an increase after you stop working.

    

   Useful tip
   Some municipalities provide pensioners with:

   • a reduced municipal waste fee,
   • a reduced dog tax.

   Each municipality sets its own conditions. You may also apply for discounts through Slovensko.sk: select the municipality and search for a service typically called 'Municipal Waste Collection Notification' or 'Dog Tax'.