Switzerland prepares first 13th old-age pension payment

December 2026 will mark the first time Switzerland pays an additional monthly AHV old-age pension. The average payment is expected to reach about CHF 1,580, giving millions of retirees a larger year-end transfer as living costs continue to shape household budgets.

The estimate comes from the previous year’s pension figures. In 2025, around 2.6 million people received an old-age pension, with an average monthly payment of CHF 1,576. The 13th payment will equal one twelfth of the pension received during the current year, according to an analysis by the Federal Social Insurance Office.

Eligibility depends on the recipient’s status in December. Anyone receiving an old-age pension that month qualifies. People who retired for the first time in 2026 will receive only a proportional amount, reflecting the months for which they were entitled to a pension.

The payment will be administered through the existing AHV system. It will not include children’s pensions or supplementary pensions. The new transfer therefore adds a specific benefit to the old-age pension, while leaving other social insurance payments outside the scheme.

Where a pensioner lives produces one of the sharpest differences in the AHV figures. In 2025, the average monthly pension for people living in Switzerland was CHF 1,969. For recipients abroad, the average was CHF 702.

The gap largely reflects contribution histories. Many people receiving Swiss pensions outside the country worked in Switzerland for only part of their careers, leaving them with fewer contribution years. Swiss old-age pensions are tied closely to the length of the contribution record and the income on which contributions were paid.

The overseas group is large in number but smaller in total value. About one third of all pensions were paid abroad in 2025, yet those payments accounted for only 14% of the total pension amount. Swiss citizens and other eligible recipients living in neighbouring countries and further afield will therefore experience the 13th payment at very different levels.

The average figure of CHF 1,580 offers a national reference point, not a standard cheque. Individual payments will continue to reflect work histories, contribution gaps, pension ceilings and residence patterns.

Marital status can determine whether two pensions are combined under a shared ceiling. When both partners in a married couple receive an old-age pension, their combined amount is often capped at 150% of the maximum pension. In 2025, many such couples received between CHF 1,500 and CHF 2,000 in total.

Single pensioners occupied a much wider range. Almost one third received between CHF 2,000 and CHF 2,500, while 24% received less than CHF 500 because of incomplete contribution periods. The figures show why an average payment cannot predict the financial position of an individual household.

The data also record a modest difference by gender. Women received an average of CHF 1,630, compared with CHF 1,517 for men. The Federal Social Insurance Office analysis attributes part of that difference to the widow’s or widower’s supplement, which raises the old-age pension for people who have lost a spouse.

Only 9% of all recipients received CHF 2,520 or more. The 13th payment will reproduce these underlying differences rather than flatten them.

The December payment will expose the full range of Switzerland’s retirement incomes in a single month. A pensioner with a complete contribution record may receive an additional amount close to the national average, while someone with gaps, a short Swiss insurance history or a capped marital pension will receive much less.

For new retirees, timing will matter. People who began drawing an old-age pension during 2026 will not receive the full extra month. Their payment will be calculated proportionally according to the months in which they were entitled to the pension. Existing pensioners who remain eligible in December will receive the full 13th amount linked to their current pension.

The reform will add an annual payment without changing the rules that determine the ordinary AHV pension. Contribution years, earnings, marital status, widow’s or widower’s supplements and the distinction between ordinary and supplementary benefits remain decisive.

The Federal Social Insurance Office’s figures provide the clearest guide to what households can expect: CHF 1,576 was the average monthly pension in 2025, but individual payments ranged widely. The first December distribution will make that variation visible across Switzerland and among Swiss pension recipients abroad.