Pensions: the new adjustment will be included in January’s payment – but 3.6 million people will have to wait until March

The revaluation of pensions in accordance with the new band-based criteria set out in the budget will come into effect from January for amounts up to four times the minimum pension (€611.85); for all others, an adjustment will be made by the end of the first quarter of 2027. In essence, the majority of the 16.5 million pensioners will have their pension payments adjusted for inflation with their January payslip, whilst 3.6 million who receive gross monthly amounts of €2,447.40 or more will have to wait until March to see the adjustment applied in line with the new criteria.

During the hearing in the Chamber of Deputies on the Manora 2027 scheme, the Director-General of INPS, Valeria Vittimberga, emphasised that the system had been amended automatic revaluation of pension benefits, by reintroducing the band-based mechanism applied to the total amount of the pension, and by modifying the calculation method, with the number of bands increasing from three to six, with revaluation percentages decreasing from 100 per cent to 32 per cent. “Given the time required for the pension review – added the Director-General – which has already led to the calculation of the January instalment, and in line with practices adopted in the past to ensure the correct application of the mechanism, the Institute will, from January, apply the adjustment only to pensions amounting to up to four times the minimum pension. By the first quarter of 2027, the Institute will recognise, by means of an adjustment in in favour of pensioners, the differences arising from the application of the revaluation under the new rules to other groups’.

In essence, for pensions up to 2,447.40 euros (up to 4 times the minimum), a 100 per cent revaluation is scheduled for January, from 2,447.41 to 3,059.25 euros (between 4 and 5 times the minimum) an 85 per cent revaluation. From €3,059.26 to €3,671.10 (between 5 and 6 times the minimum), a 53 per cent revaluation, from €3,671.11 to €4,894.80 (between 6 and 8 times the minimum) a revaluation of 47 per cent; from €4,894.81 to €6,118.50 (between 8 and 10 times the minimum) a revaluation of 37 per cent. Above €6,118.50 (more than 10 times the minimum), a revaluation of 32 per cent applies.

Vittimberga pointed out that the Budget Law also addresses the severance pay for civil servants who leave service due to reaching the age limit, which will be paid out within 6 months in 2028, within 3 months in 2029, and from the date of leaving service from 2030 onwards. The payment of these sums in instalments will also be phased out gradually, leading to its abolition from 2035. “This is a long-awaited measure,” added the Director-General of INPS, “which will enable public sector workers to receive sums already accrued more quickly.” The provision implements the directives of the Constitutional Court, which, in Judgment No. 130 of 2023, had called for the abolition of delay tactics and, in Order No. 25 of 2026, suspended proceedings to allow the Government and Parliament to take action.”

 According to Vittimberga, the changes introduced will require a ‘reorganisation and concentration of human and material resources on the settlement process, with implications for the management and day-to-day running of the offices’, the Director-General went on to clarify that “the time taken for settlement does not depend solely on the Institute, but also on the timeliness and completeness of the data provided by other public administrations”.