A remarriage at retirement age is always a joyful event. But be careful, this can have an unexpected financial impact for these elderly people.
Life doesn’t end when you retire. Outings, travel, volunteering, creative activities, grandchildren, retirees have a busy daily life. There are also many who meet wonderful people and find love again. Some, even widowers for years, take the plunge into marriage and embark on a new life together. Love has no age! But this remarriage is not without financial consequences.
When he becomes a widower, the surviving spouse faces a certain number of procedures, with Health Insurance, banking establishments, insurance companies. In addition to organizing the funeral, you must then close the accounts, cancel subscriptions, and organize the succession. In certain cases, the surviving spouse can benefit from what is called survivor’s pension. It allows him to receive part of the deceased spouse’s retirement pension, the amount of which varies depending on different factors (age, resource conditions, number of children, etc.)
But be careful, some retirees lose this survivor’s pension if they choose to remarry. However, this does not concern retirees affiliated to the General Scheme, that is to say the basic Social Security insurance, but only those who receive a supplementary pension from Agirc-Arrco. In fact, it is not paid in the event of remarriage and, if the survivor’s pension was paid before the remarriage, it is permanently canceled. This is obviously an element to take into account when you receive a small pension yourself. The solution may then be to take out a PACS, because it will have no effect on the payment of the Agirc-Arrco survivor’s pension, the latter not being subject to resource conditions.
Please note: this is, however, the case for the survivor’s pension from the general system, the conclusion of a PACS can therefore modify the payment conditions. If in doubt, it is recommended to consult a retirement advisor or a notary to precisely assess the impact of a remarriage on the assistance received. Sometimes, a simple precaution is enough to preserve your rights without giving up your life choices.
