Expenditure on pension benefits continues to rise

In the first half of 2010 spending on AOW pensions increased by 500 million euro on the first half of 2009. By the end of June 2010 nearly 2.9 million people received  AOW  pension benefits. Just over 60 percent of the spending on AOW is covered by the contributions.

2.9 million AOW recipients

In the first six months of 2010 spending on AOW pensions amounted to 14.9 billion euro. This is 3.6 percent more than in the first half of 2009. The number of AOW recipients increased by 84 thousand to nearly 2.9 million during this period. About 10 percent of the recipients lives abroad. The aging of the population and to some extent raising the benefits caused a 44 percent increase in AOW spending in the last decade. The increase in the number of recipients will increase even more from 2011 onwards when the  baby boom generation starts to retire.

Increased spending on AOW pensions and more recipients

Contributions cover over 60 percent of spending

Contributions cover over 60 percent of the spending on AOW pensions. Government contributes the rest. The government share has increased substantially in the last decade. By the end of the nineties AOW contributions were frozen at 18 percent of income. The structural increase in expenditure due to the aging population comes from the public funds, to which people over 65 also contribute.

Share of government contribution to AOW pensions

Linda Peters