This pension fund provides the following benefits for members and their surviving dependants:

• old-age pensions
• occupational disability pensions
• provisions for surviving dependants
• child benefit (only if the member has been granted an old-age pension or occupational disability pension)
• lump-sum settlements for surviving spouses or civil partners who lose their pension entitlements on remarrying

Note: Additional benefits (e.g. meeting the costs of convalescent care or medical rehabilitation measures, death benefit, subsidies towards health and nursing care insurance) are not provided.

All members of the pension fund must pay contributions as long as they do not receive an old-age pension or occupational disability pension. Minimum and maximum contributions are set, and the amount paid depends on the nature of the member’s work. The contributions are regulated as follows:

• for self-employed persons, the regular contribution is 18 percent of the assessment threshold set for state pension insurance. You can apply to pay reduced contributions during the first five years of your membership.
• Employees pay the same amount as they would to the state pension insurance scheme.

Most employers deduct the membership contributions from their employees’ salaries and send them directly to the pension fund. If you are employed, please give your membership number to your employer and inform him that you are exempted from payments into the state pension scheme. If you are not employed, or if your employer does not pay the contributions directly to the pension fund, you must pay the contributions yourself. You can download a direct debit authorisation form from the internet.

Tip: You can get an overview of the regulations for self-employed persons, employees and civil servants on the website of the Baden-Württemberg Chamber of Architects’ pension fund.