Flexirente: partial pension and working while retired in Germany

“Flexirente” is not a separate type of pension. The name comes from the Flexirentengesetz and covers several rules that make the step from work into retirement more flexible. These are the ones that matter in 2026. Status: October 2026.

The building blocks

1. Partial pension (Teilrente). Any old-age pension can be drawn as a partial pension of at least 10 % and at most 99.99 % of the full pension (§ 42 SGB VI). You choose the share yourself, even without a job on the side. The part you do not draw is paid later with a smaller reduction or none.

2. Unlimited earnings. Since 1 January 2023 there is no earnings limit for old-age pensions, including before the statutory retirement age, and you no longer have to report a job to the pension insurance. Disability pensions (Erwerbsminderungsrenten) still have limits.

3. Keep paying in. If you work while drawing an early old-age pension, you stay subject to pension contributions. After the statutory age, someone on a full pension is exempt, but can waive the exemption by telling the employer (§ 5 (4) SGB VI). The contributions then raise the pension, each time from July of the following year.

4. Start later. For each month you defer the pension past the statutory age, it rises permanently by 0.5 % (§ 77 SGB VI). One year adds 6 %.

5. Buy out reductions. From age 50 you can pay extra contributions to offset the reduction for a planned early pension (§ 187a SGB VI).

On top of this, since 2026 the Aktivrente lets employees who keep working after the statutory age receive up to €2,000 a month of salary tax-free. Social contributions are still due.

Example: half a pension at 64

Petra, born 1964, has 35 insurance years and could draw a full pension of €1,600 gross at 67 (all figures without further contributions or adjustments). From 64 she wants to work half-time.

• Full pension from 64: 36 months early, 36 × 0.3 % = 10.8 % reduction. €1,600 × 0.892 = €1,427.20, for life.
• 50 % partial pension from 64: €800 × 0.892 = €713.60 until 67. At 67 the second half is added without reduction: €713.60 + €800 = €1,513.60.

With the partial pension Petra gets €713.60 a month less until 67 than with the full pension, but her pension from 67 is €86.40 a month higher for life. Her half-time salary also earns further pension points.

Common misunderstandings

• “I can only earn a little next to an early pension.” That was the rule until the end of 2022; for old-age pensions there is no limit now.
• “Flexirente is Altersteilzeit.” No. Altersteilzeit is a part-time arrangement with your employer; the Flexirente rules concern your pension.
• “Extra earnings are tax-free.” No. Salary and pension are taxed together, and social contributions are due on the salary. The Aktivrente only applies after the statutory age and only to employees.
• “The reduction disappears later.” The reduction on the part drawn early stays for life.

In your plan

A partial pension combined with part-time work can smooth the transition. Whether it pays depends on how long you draw the pension. The part-time calculator shows what working less costs, and the German pension gap calculator the effect of an earlier or later start. The pension itself is counted in pension points; what is left net depends on health insurance for pensioners (KVdR).