# The Rürup pension (Basisrente): a large German tax deduction with strings attached > The Basisrente, usually called the Rürup pension, is Germany's tax-favoured private pension. In 2026 you can deduct contributions of up to €30,826 from taxable income, €61,652 for couples filing jointly. In return the law locks the money away: it is paid from age 62 at the earliest, only as a monthly pension for life, and never as a lump sum. It matters most to the self-employed, who have no employer scheme. Quelle/Source: https://www.nammert.com/en/insurance-broker-basic-pension-ruerup.php Updated: 2026-11-11 ## Is a Rürup pension worth it for me? It suits freelancers and self-employed people who do not pay into the German state pension, and employees in a high tax bracket. It only makes sense if you are sure you will not need the money before retirement and expect to be taxed in Germany for the years in which you deduct. You cannot cancel, borrow against or cash in the contract. If you may leave Germany within a few years, look closely at how your future country of residence would tax the pension before you sign. ## At a glance - **Mandatory?:** No. Voluntary, open to anyone who pays income tax in Germany - **Deduction ceiling 2026:** €30,826 for single filers, €61,652 for joint filers, 100% deductible as special expenses - **Payout:** monthly pension for life only, from age 62 at the earliest, no lump sum - **Tax on the pension:** 84% taxable if payments start in 2026, rising 0.5 points per year of first payment to 100% from 2058 - **Cancellation:** not possible, the contract can only be made paid-up - **Cooling-off period:** 30 days after receiving the documents ## How the deduction works, and why it differs from a SIPP or an IRA Contributions count as special expenses (Sonderausgaben) in your German tax return. Since 2023 they are deductible in full, in 2026 up to €30,826 a year, or €61,652 for married couples and registered partners assessed together. The ceiling is linked to the maximum contribution to the miners' pension scheme and goes up in most years. The ceiling is shared. Everything you and your employer pay into the German state pension, or into a professional pension fund (Versorgungswerk) for doctors, lawyers or architects, is counted first. A well-paid employee therefore has far less room than a freelancer who pays nothing into the state scheme. A simplified example without solidarity surcharge or church tax: pay in €10,000 at a marginal rate of 42% and your tax bill drops by roughly €4,200. Unlike a UK SIPP there is no tax-free lump sum later, and unlike a US IRA you cannot withdraw early against a penalty. The lock is absolute. ## What the law forbids German income tax law only recognises contracts whose benefits cannot be inherited, transferred, pledged, sold or converted into capital. The contract pays a monthly pension for life that must not start before your 62nd birthday. The only exception is a very small pension: if it falls below a statutory threshold, €39.55 a month in 2026, the insurer may settle it with a single payment. You cannot surrender the policy. If you stop paying, the contract becomes paid-up and the balance stays invested until retirement. Every Rürup contract must be certified under the Altersvorsorgeverträge-Zertifizierungsgesetz, and the certificate number appears in the policy documents. Check for it before you sign. ## Tax later, and what happens if you move abroad The deduction is a deferral. The pension is taxed when it is paid: 84% of it is taxable for people whose payments start in 2026, and the share rises by half a percentage point for each later starting year until pensions that begin in 2058 or later are taxed in full. The gain comes from the gap between your tax rate while working and your rate in retirement. If you retire outside Germany, which country may tax the pension depends on the double taxation agreement between Germany and your country of residence. The rules differ from treaty to treaty, so this needs a tax adviser, not a rule of thumb. We arrange insurance contracts and do not give tax advice. ## Death, partners and disability cover The balance cannot be left to heirs. The only permitted death benefit is a pension for your spouse or registered civil partner and for children as long as German child benefit (Kindergeld) is payable for them. An unmarried partner receives nothing, however long you have lived together. Without eligible survivors the balance stays with the pool of insured people. You may add occupational disability cover to the contract, and that part of the premium is then deductible too, provided more than half of the premium goes towards the retirement pension. The drawback: a disability pension paid from a Rürup contract is taxed like the retirement pension, and the cover is tied to a contract you cannot leave. ## What is covered - Monthly retirement pension for life from the agreed start date, age 62 at the earliest - Guaranteed pension factor or guaranteed minimum pension, depending on the product - Survivor's pension for a spouse, registered partner or children with child benefit entitlement, if agreed - Guarantee period whose remaining payments go to eligible survivors as a pension - Top-up payments during the term, for example in December after a good year - Premium holiday, reduction of premiums and paid-up status - Waiver of premiums or a pension on occupational disability, if included - Immediate pension against a single premium for people close to retirement ## What is not covered - No lump sum, not even a partial one (except for very small pensions) - No surrender value, because the contract cannot be cancelled - No policy loan, assignment or pledge - No payment to heirs other than the eligible survivors - No pension before your 62nd birthday - No guaranteed return on the fund-linked part ## Who needs it - Freelancers and self-employed people in Germany without compulsory pension insurance - High-earning employees whose ceiling is not used up by state pension contributions - People a few years from retirement with high income who want to deduct single premiums - Members of a professional pension fund who want to add to their pension - Anyone who wants an income that cannot run out, however long they live ## Who does not need it - Anyone who may need the money before retirement, for a business, a home or a lean period - People who pay little German income tax: without the deduction only the lock remains - People who plan to leave Germany soon and have few years in which to deduct - Anyone who has not yet insured their ability to work ## What it costs You set the contribution yourself. Many freelancers pay a small monthly amount and top up at the end of the year once they know their profit. What you compare is therefore not the premium but costs and the pension factor: the effective cost figure shows by how many percentage points charges reduce the yearly return. **What drives the premium:** - Acquisition costs, spread over at least five years for regular premiums - Charges on top-ups and single premiums - Ongoing administration and fund charges - Charges during the payout phase - Level of the premium guarantee you choose - Riders such as a survivor's pension or disability cover _We deliberately give no price range because you decide the contribution. Costs, pension factor and guarantees are stated in the offer and in the product information sheet. Tax figures as of 2026._ ## The policy levels on the market - **Traditional Rürup pension:** Savings earn a guaranteed interest rate plus bonuses from the insurer's general fund. Predictable, with modest return expectations over long terms. - **Unit-linked with a selectable guarantee:** Part of the premiums is guaranteed at retirement, the rest is invested in funds. The higher the guarantee, the less money works in the markets. - **Unit-linked without guarantee:** The whole balance is invested in funds and moves with the markets. A guaranteed pension factor and automatic de-risking before retirement then matter most. - **Immediate pension for a single premium:** One larger payment is converted into a pension straight away. Used by older people with high income in their last working years. ## How to recognise a good policy | Criterion | Minimum standard | Strong policy | Why it matters | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Pension factor | stated, but the insurer may reduce it later | guaranteed, with a best-of check at retirement | With no lump sum available, the factor alone decides what your balance turns into. | | Top-up payments | allowed with a high minimum amount | at any time, low minimum, no consent of the insurer needed | The self-employed often know only in December how much they want to deduct. | | Minimum premium | fixed monthly premium | low minimum that can be reduced and raised again freely | The contract has to survive a bad business year. | | Paid-up status | possible with a deduction | no deduction, payments can resume without a deadline | As you cannot cancel, this is the only way out. | | Charges | disclosed in the product information sheet | low effective costs and low charges on top-ups | The money is locked for decades, so charges bite for decades. | | Survivor protection | no benefit on death | balance paid as a pension to spouse or children, guarantee period selectable | Otherwise the whole balance is lost on early death. | | Start of pension | fixed date | can be brought forward to 62 or postponed | Few freelancers know at 40 when they will stop working. | | Funds and de-risking | few funds, switches on request | low-cost index funds, free switches, automatic de-risking before retirement | You cannot sit out a market fall just before the pension starts. | | Change of provider | not addressed | transfer to another certified contract provided for, costs stated | It is the only way to leave a poor contract. | ## Insurers on the German market Many German life insurers offer Rürup contracts, as do a few fund companies with savings plans. Contracts differ in pension factor, charges and how flexibly you can top up. The list shows the market and does not say which insurers we work with. - **Allianz**: Germany's largest life insurer, sold through tied agents and brokers - **Alte Leipziger**: mutual insurer based near Frankfurt, mainly sold through brokers - **Stuttgarter**: mutual insurer, broker distribution - **LV 1871**: Munich mutual, broker distribution - **Volkswohl Bund**: Dortmund mutual, broker distribution - **WWK**: Munich mutual, agents and brokers - **HDI**: life insurer of the Talanx group, brokers and agents - **Swiss Life**: German arm of the Swiss group, financial advisers and brokers - **Württembergische**: life insurer of the W&W group, own sales force and brokers - **Debeka**: mutual with its own sales force, not available through brokers 77 insurers supervised by BaFin, the German regulator, are licensed for this class of insurance. (Lebensversicherer). Source: BaFin company database, 2026-09-18; EU insurers without a German office excluded. ## Typical claims and who pays - **No clients for two years** (the contract rests, guarantee and later pension shrink): Basic products only offer paid-up status, sometimes with a deduction. Strong ones allow pauses, lower premiums and a restart without a deadline. - **Insurer cuts the pension factor** (less monthly pension per €10,000 of balance, for life): A Rürup contract has no lump sum as a way out. A guaranteed factor with a best-of check matters more here than in any other pension product. - **Death at 58, single, no children** (the entire balance, often six figures): The law forbids payment to heirs. Without a spouse or children entitled to child benefit the balance stays with the pool of insured people. - **Death three years into retirement** (the remaining balance after three years of pension): Without a rider the pension ends on death. With a guarantee period or survivor's pension it continues for the spouse. - **Moving home, want the cash** (the balance stays locked in Germany until 62): No product may pay out or lend against the balance, otherwise it loses its certification. The pension is paid later, wherever you live. - **Unable to work at 45** (no income, no premiums, a small pension): With a premium waiver included, the insurer keeps paying into the contract. Your income is only replaced by a separate disability pension. ## Myth or truth - „Rürup contributions are 100% deductible in 2026." ✔ True, since 2023 and up to the ceiling of €30,826. State pension and pension fund contributions are counted against that ceiling first. - „Only the self-employed can take out a Rürup pension." ✘ False. Any taxpayer in Germany can. The self-employed without compulsory pension simply have the most room, because their ceiling is still unused. - „If I leave Germany I can cash the contract in." ✘ False. There is no surrender and no lump sum, whatever your reason. The contract is made paid-up and pays a pension from 62 at the earliest. - „An unmarried partner gets nothing if I die." ✔ True. Benefits may only go as a pension to a spouse, a registered partner or children entitled to child benefit. Marriage changes the answer, a will does not. - „The pension from a Rürup contract is tax-free." ✘ False. It is taxed on payout, 84% of it for pensions starting in 2026 and all of it from 2058. The tax advantage lies in the saving years. ## Common mistakes - Signing although the money may be needed before retirement - Using the full ceiling without subtracting state pension contributions and the employer's share - Counting the tax refund and forgetting that the pension will be taxed - Agreeing a high fixed monthly premium instead of starting small and topping up - Assuming an unmarried partner is protected - Signing shortly before leaving Germany without checking the tax treaty ## FAQ ### How much can I deduct in 2026? Up to €30,826, or €61,652 for couples assessed jointly, and the full amount counts. Your contributions to the German state pension, including the employer's share, and to a professional pension fund are subtracted first. The remainder can be filled with Rürup contributions. ### Can I take the money as a lump sum? No. The law only allows a monthly pension for life, from age 62 at the earliest. A single payment is possible only for very small pensions below the statutory threshold, €39.55 a month in 2026. ### Can I cancel the contract? No. You can reduce or pause premiums or make the contract paid-up. The balance stays invested and is converted into a pension later. That is why flexibility on premiums is one of the main things to check. ### What happens if I die before retirement? Without a rider nothing is paid. With survivor protection the balance is paid as a pension to your spouse, registered partner or children entitled to child benefit. Nobody else may receive anything. ### Do I need to be self-employed? No. Anyone who pays income tax in Germany can take out a contract and deduct the premiums. The self-employed simply have the most room under the ceiling because they often pay nothing into the state pension. ### How is the pension taxed later? On payout. If payments start in 2026, 84% of the pension is taxable, half a point more for each later starting year and 100% from 2058. The percentage of your starting year fixes the tax-free part. ### Can I pay in a single amount at the end of the year? Yes, if the contract allows top-ups. The deduction applies in the year of payment, so the money has to reach the provider by 31 December. Check the minimum amount and the charges on top-ups. ### Can I switch provider? The balance can only be moved to another certified Rürup contract, and only if the policy conditions provide for it. Nothing is paid out to you. Whether a transfer is possible and what it costs is set out in the conditions. ### What changes in 2027? A pension reform replaces the Riester scheme with a new subsidised product from 1 January 2027, which for the first time is also open to the self-employed. The Rürup pension continues alongside it with its own ceiling and rules. ## Legal basis and sources - [Insurance Contract Act (VVG, German)](https://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/vvg_2008/) - [BaFin company database (licensed insurers)](https://portal.mvp.bafin.de/database/InstInfo/) ## Request quotes We obtain quotes and come back with a comparison, free of charge. You can write in English. https://www.nammert.com/en/insurance-broker-basic-pension-ruerup.php#anfrage --- Your broker: Norman Nammert, trading as NAMMERT. Insurance broker licensed under section 34d(1) of the German Trade Regulation Act. Broker register no. D-C08Q-TOSD4-37. NAMMERT Assekuradeur GmbH is a separate company. It does not arrange your contract. NAMMERT Assekuradeur GmbH, Karl-Marx-Straße 4, 15711 Königs Wusterhausen, +49 3375 29 12 77, info@nammert.com. Wikidata: Q141141479.