Foreword to the 2023 annual report of the German Pension Insurance

Dear Readers,

the international political climate remained tense in 2023. While the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine continued, the Middle East conflict was reignited by Hamas’ attack on Israel. Inflation and high interest rates in Germany placed a burden on both households and the economy.

The financial position of Deutsche Rentenversicherung (the German Pension Insurance) has gone against the negative economic trend. It reported revenue of 381.2 billion euros – up approximately 5.0 per cent versus the previous year – driven by high employment figures and wage increases.

Pensioners have also benefited from a pension adjustment that resulted in them receiving a 4.39 per cent higher payout in western Germany and a 5.86 per cent increase in the eastern German states. The pension value (i.e. the monthly amount of pension per earnings point) has also been harmonised throughout Germany since 1 July 2023.

In addition to that, the German Pension Insurance expanded its digital portfolio to include two new and attractive service offerings for customers: the recently launched Customer Portal and the Digital Pension Overview.

Last but not least, the representatives elected in the “Sozialwahl 2023” (the elections for the social security institutions’ self-government bodies) have now commenced work.

On the following pages we set out the pension insurance developments in 2023.