Orphanage: pension insurance requires new evidence

If you are entitled to an orphan pension, you have to regularly prove that the requirements for the payment are still met. That is why the German pension insurance again sent so -called review letters to young people in September who are currently receiving an orphan pension.

The orphan pension is usually paid until the 18th birthday. In addition, there is only the claim as long as the orphans are in school or vocational training, study or voluntary service- at the latest up to the age of 27. In order to continue payments, the pension insurance requires current documents on the training status.

Addressees of the letters are asked to fill out the form and have it confirmed by your training center. Alternatively, other evidence such as teaching contracts, certificates, semester certificates or official certificates can be submitted. These documents can be transmitted to the pension insurance by post, online via the R5462 form or via the contact form S8003.

As soon as the evidence is completely available, the German pension insurance checks the application and decides whether the orphan’s pension will continue to be paid. The result is sent to those affected by official notification.

The orphan pension is a service of the statutory pension insurance in Germany, which children secure financially after the death of a parent. In 2024, around 270,000 children and adolescents received this support. This corresponds to around one percent of all pensions from the statutory insurance.

The amount of the orphan pension depends on the acquired pension claims of the deceased parent and whether it is a half-orisee or full or full pension. The monthly pay amounts vary, but are often in the lower area, since the claims are usually not very high. The pensions are dynamically adjusted and usually increase annually with the general pension adjustment.