Concurrent pension rights

Membership of the Bundestag or of the Government is always subject to time limits, and so it often accounts for only a small proportion of an individual’s working life. It is quite common for a person appointed to high political office to give up his or her previous profession. For this reason, holders of public office have a shorter qualification period for pension entitlements than people in more permanent employment. In cases where an individual has pension entitlements in respect of more than one public office, these are offset against each other in accordance with specific statutory provisions. For example, Members’ fully taxable superannuation benefits are reckonable against income from other public funds, such as the statutory pension scheme or the retirement pension payable to former members of the Government.