State-subsidised retirement savings with the Altersvorsorgedepot

The legal start is 1 January 2027. You can register without obligation now – as soon as accounts can be opened, we will get in touch. To receive the 2027 subsidy, it is enough to sign a contract during the year and pay in at least €120.

From 2027 the eligible group is considerably larger than under Riester. Directly eligible are members of the statutory pension insurance (in particular employees, parents raising children, carers and recipients of wage-replacement benefits), civil servants, judges, soldiers and equivalent groups. New: self-employed persons and freelancers with income under § 15 or § 18 (1) no. 1–3 EStG, provided they file an income tax return for the year and have not yet turned 67, as well as compulsory members of professional pension schemes who consent to their membership being reported to the central allowance office. Spouses and registered partners without their own eligibility remain indirectly eligible – with their own contract, their own minimum contribution of €120 and a basic allowance capped at €175. Not eligible are recipients of a full old-age pension and mini-jobbers exempted from pension insurance.

Yes, three limits apply. The minimum own contribution is €120 per year (€10 per month) – below that there is no allowance at all, not even a partial one. Contributions are subsidised up to €1,800 per year (€150 per month). You can pay in up to €6,840 per year. Allowances stop at €1,800, the tax advantage does not: returns remain free of withholding tax and the advance lump sum and keep compounding for the entire term.

Yes. You can increase, reduce or pause your savings rate or make one-off payments. The contract and allowances already received remain. Just note: if your contributions in a year stay below €120, there is no allowance for that year – and it cannot be made up later.

The Altersvorsorgedepot generally has no contribution guarantee. Your money is invested in the capital markets; fluctuations and losses are possible – in return, long-term return potential is considerably higher than with guaranteed products. You are protected against insolvency: fund units are segregated assets held separately from the provider's and custodian bank's assets.

No. The investment is managed for you. As the payout phase approaches, your capital is gradually moved into the safer investment so that large fluctuations no longer hit your balance shortly before retirement. You are notified when this starts; switches during the savings phase are tax-free.

In principle yes, but not without consequences: an early withdrawal is treated as detrimental to the subsidy. Allowances and tax benefits must be repaid and returns taxed retroactively. For short-term needs, keep a reserve outside the Altersvorsorgedepot.

Payouts start at age 65 at the earliest and 70 at the latest – you choose. At the start you can withdraw up to 30% of your capital as a lump sum. For the rest you choose between a lifelong annuity and a payout plan running at least until age 85. With the payout plan your capital stays invested and the instalments are higher, but the assets are used up when the plan ends. Taxation only applies in retirement.

During the savings phase the balance can be transferred without deductions to a retirement contract of your spouse or registered partner; the subsidy is retained. For other heirs, allowances and tax benefits are reclaimed and the remaining capital is paid out. In the payout phase, allowances must likewise be repaid by heirs other than the spouse or registered partner. A lifelong annuity ends on death unless a guaranteed period was agreed.