Index – National – How many luxury retirees are there in Hungary?

Almost 40,000 elderly people living in Hungary whose pensions do not reach 50,000 guilders a month, according to the latest data from the Hungarian State Treasury for February. They add that a significant proportion of those who are normally entitled to low benefits, namely 25,641 pensioners, also receive benefits from abroad.

Of the two million pensioners, not every second pensioner receives the average pension for 2020, which was 142,000 HUF, according to the pension insurance. This average is significantly increased by the small number of pensioners who receive extremely high benefits: 36,000 people receive a pension greater than HUF 350,000,

While last year 32 people were entitled to benefits of more than one million florins, this year the remuneration of more than 100 pensioners is more than double the average salary.

January 2021, retired
Full board HUF / month	number of eligible people (principal)	from which bilateral agreement, or they are also entitled to a pension from abroad under an international agreement Number of employees (principal)
Less than 28,500	17 599	17 020
28 500-49 999	21 692	8 621
50000-99 999	397 373	17 058
100 000-149 999	782031	12 280
150 000-1999 999	429 111	5 639
200 000-299 999	305 055	3 990
300 000-399 999	58 521	961
400 000- 4999999	12 813	270
500 000- 999 999	4 457	142
1000 000-1999999	95	8
1999 over 999	eleven
Total:	2 028 758	65 989

Source: Hungarian State Treasury

The sky is the limit

There is no upper limit for pensions in Hungary, that is, there is no pension ceiling, but they are an insignificant minority within the pension society, they do not determine the image of the pension society.

András Farkas, a pension expert, drew attention in January. As he said, now nothing stops the development of a senior retiree. If someone is lucky enough to be able to declare large earnings for a long time, there is no upper limit for the old-age pension.

The pension expert told the Index. At the same time, in his opinion, the Hungarian pension system is terribly unfair.

In no country is it possible for the insurance principle to be applied indefinitely in the old-age pension system.

The principle implies that the amount of pension contributions a worker receives during his lifetime is at least the same pension amount. As he explains, there is a certain principle of solidarity in other countries, that is, there is an upper limit for extra benefits.

The expert added that almost all European pension schemes have a contribution ceiling, precisely because the state believes that it is not their job to replace full earnings, this is a matter for the individual and their employer.

One of the pillars of the current pension system is that the government decides it without a time limit.

Just over 17,000 retirees received this or less in January of this year. As the Index wrote at the end of the year, this amount has remained unchanged since 2008. According to pension expert András Farkas, the problem with this decision is not only that the amount is far below the benefit that provides a decent life to older people, but also that many social benefits, allowances and benefits are linked to it.

The system crackles

It was not only András Farkas who drew attention to the shortcomings of the existing pension system. The National Association of Retirees (NYOSZ) considers that the current system cannot be maintained, which is why they have put to a vote the proposals they consider feasible to reform the pension increase system. As reported by the Index at the beginning of the year, NYOSZ believes that the amount of the minimum old-age pension should be increased to at least 50,000 HUF.

László Juhász, the head of the pension section of the Hungarian Trade Union Confederation, which highlighted the European Pillar of Social Rights, was signed by Hungary, along with other European states, also agrees with the NYOSZ proposal. This decree stipulates, among other things, that a dignified life must be provided for all the elderly. But, as László Juhász said,

the amount of the minimum old-age pension is not enough for this.

As proposed by the national association

that is, whoever has a higher pension should have a smaller increase in the amount set each year, and whoever has a lower pension should receive a larger increase.

(Cover image: A delivery man counts money in the apartment of a retiree. Photo: György Varga / MTI)