My rights

In the event of the death of your spouse, you must report this to your regional fund. You may be entitled to benefits to support you during this difficult period.

The survivor’s pension

In the event of the death of your spouse, you must inform your regional fund. 

You may be eligible for a survivor’s pension. This is equal to 54% of the pension that your deceased spouse or former spouse received or could have received, without taking into account pension increases. It may be reduced depending on your income.

Conditions

To receive a survivor’s pension, you must meet the following conditions:

  • be at least 55 years old. This age is lowered to 51 if your spouse (or ex-spouse) died before 1st January 2009 or disappeared before 1st January 2008;
  • being or having been married to the deceased person. The civil solidarity pact (PACS) and cohabitation do confer entitlement to a survivor’s pension;
  • your personal and professional income or that of your new household must not exceed a certain limit. This is reviewed over the 3-month period prior to the start of your survivor’s pension.

The amount

The survivor’s pension is equal to 54% of the pension received or that could have been received by your deceased spouse or ex-spouse, without taking into account pension increases. It may be reduced depending on your income. The amount may not be less than the minimum amount if your deceased spouse or former spouse had a total of 60 quarters under the general scheme. If they had less than 60 quarters, this minimum is reduced proportionally.

The survivor’s pension is subject to deductions.

If your spouse or ex-spouse was married several times, the survivor’s pension is shared. This split is proportional to the length of each marriage.

Did you know?

If your spouse or ex-spouse was married several times, the survivor’s pension is shared. This split is proportional to the length of each marriage. When a survivor’s pension is shared between several former spouses, if one of them dies, the amount is shared between the surviving former spouse(s) or is entirely allocated to the last beneficiary. This recalculation is not automatic. The surviving ex-spouse(s) is/are required to report the death of another beneficiary to their regional fund and to provide, if possible, a death certificate.

Increases

Your survivor’s pension is automatically increased by 11.1%, if:

  • you have reached retirement age at the maximum rate (also called "full rate", between 65 and 67 years of age, depending on your year of birth and your circumstances);
  • you have claimed all your pension rights;
  • the total amount of your pensions does not exceed the income limit.

If the total amount of your pension and the increase exceeds the limit, the increase will be reduced accordingly. The pension payments used are those for the 3 months preceding the start date of the increase.

Your survivor’s pension can also be increased:

  • by 10% if you have had or raised at least 3 children. This increase is made automatically when your survivor’s pension is calculated;
  • a flat-rate increase for each dependent child (as defined by the Assurance maladie healthcare scheme). For this, you must not have reached the retirement age at the maximum rate (between 65 and 67 years of age depending on your year of birth and your circumstances) and you must not receive a personal pension or an orphan benefit paid by a basic pension scheme. This flat-rate increase is not automatically allocated, you must apply for it.

If your survivor’s pension is shared with other spouses, your flat-rate increase is still fully payable for each child. However, if your survivor’s pension is reduced due to your income, your flat-rate child benefit is reduced proportionally.

Applying for a survivor’s pension

The survivor’s pension is not automatically assigned, you must apply for it.

You can apply for your survivor’s pension online via the “Apply for a survivor’s pension” service accessible via your personal area. This service enables you to apply for a survivor’s pension from all the schemes to which the deceased spouse contributed. 

If you’re not familiar with the “Apply for a survivor’s pension” service... Take a look! Explore the “Apply for a survivor’s pension” service.

Please note

You can apply for a survivor’s pension by post. In this case, an application must be made to each pension plan to which your deceased spouse contributed.

 

Travailleurs indépendants

Surviving spouse assistance

This assistance allows you to deal with the financial difficulties caused by the death of your spouse.

Conditions

To qualify for Surviving Spouse Assistance, several conditions must be met.

Your spouse:

  • must have been retired and have been self-employed;
  • must have contributed at least 3 years to the supplementary scheme for the self-employed (RCI - régime complémentaire des indépendants) and/or must have accumulated at least 40 quarters under the basic pension scheme (RVB - régime vieillesse de base) for the self-employed.

You must:

  • be in receipt of a survivor’s pension from your deceased spouse from his/her activity as a self-employed worker. The amount must be greater than that of your personal pension;
  • not be cohabiting with anyone;
  • have a personal pension of less than 20 quarters under another plan.

The amount

The amount of assistance can be up to 2,000 euros.

This exceptional assistance may be granted after a detailed review of the situation, subject to the opinion of the regional committee, taking into account your social circumstances and the career particulars of your deceased spouse.

Application

To request this assistance, you must download the Application for assistance for pensioners in crisis situations (ASIR - aide aux retraités en situation de rupture) form and return it, duly completed and accompanied by supporting documents, via the “Submit my form” service or by post to your regional fund.

Assistance for the surviving spouse must be applied for within a maximum period of 6 months after the death.

Widow’s/widower’s retirement pension

The widow’s/widower’s retirement pension replaces the widow’s/widower’s disability pension paid by l’Assurance Maladie. It is awarded as soon as you reach the age of 55 by your pension fund. After comparison with the general scheme's survivor’s pension, the most advantageous amount is paid. It may be increased under the same conditions as the survivor’s pension.

It is not cumulative with the survivor’s pension.

Information on the widow’s/widower’s disability pension can be found on the ameli.fr website.

Did you know?

If your deceased spouse made a contribution in Alsace-Moselle before 01/07/1946, you may be eligible for a widow’s/widower’s pension under the Alsace-Moselle scheme. For more information, contact the Alsace-Moselle regional fund.

For more information, see the pages “Procedures in the event of death”; “My Rights”; “Improve My Income”.