In Romania there are no official data on the number of old people without income, but the preliminary data of INS indicates the share of 65 years and over which they were at risk of poverty or social exclusion in 2024. Much of them now receives any lion from the state, no social pension and no aids from the mayors.
Almost 30% of Romania's elderly were at risk of poverty in 2024. Photo Pixabay
The share of 65 -year -old persons and who were at risk of poverty or social exclusion was 29.3%, in 2024, according to the official data of the National Institute of Statistics.
The percentage is terribly high, considering that in the autumn of last year the pensions recalculated according to the new pension law.
The reason for poverty is not only given by the amount of the pension (about 1 million Romanians collect less than 1,300 lei, according to CNPP data for July), but also that much of the seniors have no income.
Why? Because most of the time women were housewife, preferring to take care of children and household while men went to work “To bring money home.”
In the case of men, either they worked too little as a number of years, or they worked without legal forms, so that at the retirement age they do not meet the requirements for collecting the minimum amount from the state.
What the law says
All the laws of public pensions after the Revolution indicated a minimum number of years in the field of work, years in which the employees (before the 2018 reform also contributed) contribute to the public pension system.
And without these contributions, which according to the current pension law must be transferred for at least 15 years, no one reached the retirement age can be retired.
We emphasize this to combat the misinformation recently published in the public space, which creates confusion among the population, suggesting that Romanians can achieve social pension, even if they have not worked any day.
General criteria for retirement:
Standard retirement age:
According to Law no. 263/2010, currently, the standard retirement age is 65 years for men and 62.5 – 63 years for women (by 2030, with a progressive increase after this year until the age of 65 and women).
The minimum contribution period:
In order to benefit from the old -age pension, it is necessary to have made the minimum contribution period, which is 15 years, for both women and men, according to Law no. 263/2010.
Anticipated retirement:
This is granted no later than 5 years before the standard retirement age, to people who have exceeded the full contribution period by at least 5 years.
Partial anticipated retirement:
This option is available for people who have a full contribution period, but have not yet reached the standard retirement age.
Who can't retire
According to the labor legislation and the public pension system in Romania, not all persons have an automatic pension right. “Mainly, the pension is granted to the persons who have achieved the minimum contribution period in the public system,” said for “truth”Corina Ștefan, specialist human resources and founder 24hr.ro.
Therefore, except for foreign citizens who do not have their domicile in Romania and have not worked and contributed to us, they cannot retire or receive a pension:
1. People who have not made minimum contribution period – For example, those who have never worked on the basis of a employment contract, did not carry out independent activities, did not contribute to the public pension system through other legal forms (such as contributions for authorized natural persons, PFA).
2. People who work only “in black” – that is, without legal forms of employment or tax registration; For these people there are no contributions in the public system, so no contribution period is accumulated.
3. Persons who work but do not pay social contributions – for example, those who have revenues from rents, dividends or other non -tax sources as a pension, without contributing to the CAS (social insurance contribution). Even if they have income, without contributions in the public system, they cannot benefit from the pension.
4. Citizens who have not reached the legal age for retirement nor have a complete contribution period. Even if they contributed, if they do not reach the legal age, they cannot retire.
“There are also other categories of people who risk not receiving a pension if they do not realize the minimum contribution period, which for the old -age pension is 15 years.
Such a category is represented by people who, after starting their professional life and contributed to the pension system, founded a family and chose to stay home to deal with the household or raising children. If, because of this, I do not reach the minimum internship threshold, the law gives them the opportunity to conclude a convention with the pension house to pay their own contributions for the missing periods“, Corina Stefan told” Adevărul “.
The case of the employer did not turn on state contributions
Another vulnerable category is that of the persons who, although they had legally registered employment contracts, the employer did not submit the statements or did not transfer the budget contributions, added the human resources specialist.
In such cases, she added, employees should periodically check their contribution period, which can now be done online, on the website of the Pension House, especially if they have doubts about the seriousness of the employer.
Also, there are situations when periods of suspension of activity, such as free leave, decrease from the calculation of the contribution period. These periods, although they seem small, can accumulate and make the difference between the touch or not the minimum internship. Therefore, people who are close to the 15 -year -old have to be careful about these situations.
Before 2003, civil conventions ended for part-time work
There has been a situation in the past to be mentioned. It was a period, before 2003 when civil conventions for part-time activities were drawn up, which were registered at the ITM. Many people return to those employers to request certificates when they go to submit their pension file, as they received an original copy of the visa convention from the ITM, without knowing, that based on the law now, for those revenues there were no social insurance contributions, but only health contributions and there are no period and there are no period and there are no period and there are no period and there are no period to the period, and amounts.
“In conclusion, the right to pension is closely related to contributions and the minimum internship, that is the number of years in which this contribution actually paid, not that a person has income. Even who has money from other sources, if he has not paid social contributions, he will not receive a pension.”concluded the specialist.
Confusion related to social allowance
There are many people who believe that the social allowance of 1,281 lei, as it is today, are granted to individuals automatically when they reach the retirement age.
It is totally false, as evidenced by the law and the above explanations.
The social allowance is granted to the pensioners who would collect less than this amount monthly following the calculations regarding the contributions paid at least 15 years.
According to the data of the National House of Public Pensions (CNPP), in July 2025 about 1 million Romanians had less than 1,281 lei, collecting the social allowance, according to the law.
The beneficiaries of the public pension system, whose revenues from pensions and allowances, cumulated, are below the value of 1,281 lei, collect this value monthly, called “Social allowance for pensioners”, according to the provisions of Law no. 196/2009, with the subsequent modifications and completions (GEO no. 82/2017, GEO no. 114/2018, GEO no. 135/2020, GEO no. 125/2021, GEO no.168/2022, Law no. 360/2023 on the public pension system and of GEO no. 115/2023).
