{"id":10202,"date":"2019-10-15T09:00:35","date_gmt":"2019-10-15T07:00:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/my-life.lu\/?p=10202\/"},"modified":"2025-05-12T14:43:57","modified_gmt":"2025-05-12T12:43:57","slug":"how-to-combine-income-from-your-work-and-your-pension-53009","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/my-life.lu\/en\/how-to-combine-income-from-your-work-and-your-pension-53009\/","title":{"rendered":"How to combine income from your work and your pension"},"content":{"rendered":"

Can I draw my pension and work at the same time? If you want to earn money from professional work while receiving an (early) retirement pension in Luxembourg, there are a number of rules you\u2019ll have to follow. Read on for a simple, clear explanation from myLIFE.<\/p>\n

Whether you\u2019re counting down the days or burying your head in the sand, taking retirement will mark a key milestone in your career. Some people approach retirement eager to enjoy a whole new world of travel, creative pursuits and more time spent with family and friends. Others find the transition a lot harder and have trouble completely letting go of working life.<\/p>\n

In Luxembourg, the number of pensioners combining a pension and a professional activity has been increasing in recent years.\u00a0According to Eurostat, 9.7% in 2023 continued to work while receiving their first old-age pension.<\/p>\n

That said, whether you\u2019re looking to make up for a drop in income<\/strong><\/span><\/a> or keep one foot in the world of work, legal provisions apply when you receive money from employment and a pension at the same time.<\/p>\n

Pensions in Luxembourg<\/h2>\n

Before we delve into the details, we should mention the fact that your right to a retirement pension<\/strong><\/span><\/a> in the Grand Duchy depends on your age and the length of time (insurance periods) you\u2019ve worked in Luxembourg as an employee or self-employed professional.<\/p>\n

Anyone can draw a retirement pension<\/strong> in Luxembourg as long as they are at least 65 years of age and can prove that they have made at least 120 months of insurance contributions (whether mandatory, continued or voluntary) or retroactive payments (at least 12 months of which must have taken place in Luxembourg). There is also an early retirement pension<\/strong> that you may be entitled to when you reach 57 or 60, provided that certain conditions are met.<\/p>\n

In either of these two cases, subject to the conditions set out below, the retiree can choose to combine professional earnings and pension income. The point to note, however, is that this will affect the pension amount they receive.<\/p>\n

Conditions governing combining income from your work and your pension<\/h2>\n

As an example, let\u2019s consider Robert (65), John (58) and Martina (57) \u2013 three friends who want to work in retirement.<\/p>\n

A person drawing a retirement pension can receive income from their pension and professional work without any restrictions.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

A person aged 65 or older: combining (salaried or unsalaried) work with a pension<\/span><\/p>\n

65-year-old Robert has been receiving a retirement pension for several months. At the end of a busy working life, he\u2019s not ready to turn his back on the world of work for good and wants to carry on in his paid position so that he can pass on his knowledge and experience to the \u201cnext generation\u201d in his company.<\/p>\n

As a retirement pension recipient, Robert can choose to engage in salaried or unsalaried work (e.g. as a self-employed professional), whether on a full-time or part-time basis, without this affecting his gross pension amount. He is free to receive income from both sources at once.<\/p>\n

If his work is salaried, he can even ask the social security centre (CCSS) to reimburse him for the pension contributions he makes after he turns 65<\/strong><\/span><\/a>. He will have to file a request once a year and will only be reimbursed for the \u201cinsured\u201d component of his contributions.<\/p>\n

A person drawing an early retirement pension can receive income from their pension and professional work, subject to conditions.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

A person aged under 65: combining salaried work with a pension<\/span><\/p>\n

58-year-old John is receiving an early retirement pension. He\u2019s entitled to combine a pension and salaried work, but unlike Robert he\u2019ll have to bear a few restrictions in mind.<\/p>\n

For this young retiree to receive income from both sources at once without his pension amount being affected, he can\u2019t earn more than one third of the minimum wage (MW)<\/strong> per month, i.e. \u20ac901.25 (\u20ac2,703.741<\/sup> divided by 3).<\/p>\n

In other words, if John earns less than \u20ac10,814.96 per year (\u20ac901,25 x 12) from his salaried work, his early retirement pension amount won\u2019t be affected and he will be able to receive income from both sources.<\/p>\n

However, if John\u2019s total salary for the year is greater than one third of the MW<\/strong>, there are three potential scenarios:<\/p>\n