Family members can receive a survivors’ pension if an employee dies.
Children under the age of 18 are always entitled to receive survivors’ pension.
Surviving spouse’s right to survivors’ pension
The surviving spouse has the right to survivors’ pension if he or she has or had a child together with his or her deceased spouse and they were married.
If they did not have a child together, it is required that
- the surviving spouse was at least 50 years old when his or her spouse died or had received disability pension for at least three years and
- the marriage took place before the surviving spouse turned 50 and it had lasted for at least five years.
The surviving spouse is not entitled to survivors’ pension if his or her spouse had turned 65 before the marriage was contracted.
Common law marriage does not entitle a spouse to receive survivors’ pension.
Amount of survivors’ pension
The amount of survivors’ pension granted is based on the deceased spouse’s pension. If he or she had not yet retired, the amount of disability pension accrued up to the day of death is used as the basis for the amount.
The surviving spouse’s own earnings-related pension is also taken into account. It can reduce the amount of survivors’ pension granted or cause a decision to be made whereby no survivors’ pension is paid.
