Widow’s pension: Property separation can deprive you of benefits!

The widow’s pension, a fresh benefit to improve the financial situation of widowed seniors, is to enter into force in 2025. Although it has the possible to importantly improve the household budgets of people who lost their spouse, many Poles do not realize that 1 decision taken during the course of matrimony can completely prevent to get this support. It's about property separation.

The widow’s pension – how will this fresh witnessing work?

The widow's pension is intended to enable the combination of benefits, which is simply a revolutionary change in the Polish pension system. At present, after the death of the spouse, the entitled individual must choose 1 benefit: either his or her pension or a survivor's pension (which is 85% benefits of the deceased). The widow's pension introduces a more favourable model:

• Option 1:100% household pension after deceased spouse + 15% of your own pension or another benefits (e.g. invalidity pensions).
• Option 2:100% of your own pension or another benefit + 15% household pension After his late spouse.

Senior will be able to choose a more favourable option. The intent of this solution is to guarantee a dignified life for those who, after the death of their spouse, have found themselves in financial difficulties, e.g. due to the advanced cost of surviving a home or a home.

Equity – a key condition for obtaining widow’s pension!

In Poland, as a rule, after the matrimony is concluded, wealth. This means that all property acquired during the course of matrimony by both spouses or 1 of them constitutes a common property. but for items acquired before the wedding, as well as those obtained by inheritance, evidence or donation (unless the donor or heir decides otherwise).

However, spouses may, by common agreement, establish property separation. They do this most frequently in the form of a notarial act (so-called prenup). The reasons for specified a decision may be different:

• Protection of assets against the risks associated with the economical activity of 1 of the spouses: If 1 of the spouses operates a company which involves financial risk, the property separation may defend the property of the another spouse from possible debts.
• The desire to keep financial independence: any spouses like to keep full control of their finances and assets.
• Previous experience: Property separation is sometimes chosen by persons who have had hard experience with the division of assets after divorce.

Why does property separation regulation out widow's pension?

The Social Insurance Institution (ZUS) precisely defines the conditions to be fulfilled in order to get a widow’s pension. All these conditions must be met together. 1 of them is Staying in property relation with the spouse until the day of his death. The another conditions listed on the ZUS website are:

1. Age: The applicant for a widow’s pension must be completed 60 years (female) or 65 years (man) at the time of submission of the application.
2. Right to household pension at the appropriate age: The applicant has acquired the right to a survivor’s pension no earlier than after completing, respectively, 55 years (female) or 60 years (man). This means that if the deceased spouse left erstwhile the individual was younger, he did not meet this condition, even if he later obtained a household pension. This condition is frequently misleading – it refers to the minute of acquisition of the right to household pensionnot until a widow’s pension application is submitted.
3. No remarriage: The conclusion of another matrimony automatically deprives the widow’s pension.

It is crucial to stress that ZUS requires Total meet all conditions. Non-community, even if the another conditions are met, definitely prevents obtaining a widow’s pension.

The decision to separate assets has serious consequences, not only in the event of a possible divorce, but besides in the context of future pensions. Before making specified a decision, it is worth consulting a lawyer and carefully examining all the ‘for’ and ‘against’, taking into account not only the current situation but besides the possible consequences in the future, including the failure of the entitlement to widow’s pension. The widow’s pension may be an crucial financial support, so it is worth knowing how decisions made during the course of matrimony can affect our material situation after the death of our spouse.