If you’re a widow or widower living in Spain, there’s a chance you might be able to claim what’s known as a pensión de viudedad (widow’s pension).
Whether or not you qualify depends on a number of things.
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Though how much exactly you’re entitled to (if you are at all) depends on things like income, other pensions you may receive, and any dependents or children in your care, the main thing to understand is that, generally speaking, in order to qualify for a pensión de viudedad, your deceased partner must have worked in Spain and paid into seguridad social (social security).
According to the Seguridad Social website: in order to qualify for the widow’s pension you’ll need to meet one or more of the following conditions.
It will be necessary to prove a contribution period, which will vary according to the employment situation of the deceased and the cause of death:
- 500 days of social security contribition within an uninterrupted period of 5 years immediately prior to the death.
- Or 15 years throughout the entire working life.
- For pensioners, no contribution period is required.
- No previous contribution period is required when death occurs as a result of an accident or occupational disease.
Can I receive other benefits at the same time?
You are entitled to claim a pensión de viudedad in Spain while also claiming other types of state aid and benefits, such as a retirement pension (public and private sector) or unemployment benefit (el paro), whether from Spain or abroad.
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- The pensioner has dependants (e.g. children under 26 or disabled people in their care).
- The pension is the main, or only, source of income (i.e. the amount obtained will account for more than 50 percent of the pensioner’s income).
- The pensioner’s annual income, for all items on his or her tax return, does not exceed €19,627.6.
However, the percentage of the widower’s pension (in relation to the regulatory base) can be increased to 60 percent for people over 65 years of age, provided that they:
- They are not entitled to another public pension and, in addition, have no other income (whether through employment or self-employment).
- They have no other income, whether from assets or real estate, or from capital gains or income from economic activities that exceeds €7,707 per year.
If you think you qualify for the pensión de viudedad, you can apply in a few ways. You’ll need to:
Fill in the Modelo de Solicitud de Prestaciones de Supervivencia on the Social Security website. The Age in Spain website provides a useful breakdown (in English) of all the documents you’ll need to apply.
You can also apply:
Through the Social Security online system.
By post.
Or by going to your local Social Security office, which you can locate using this tool, but remember you’ll need to make an appointment beforehand.
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