The buyback of notional insurance periods is now becoming an integral part of the retirement process.
According to estimates by people active in the field of social insurance, almost one in two new retirement applications is now accompanied by a request for recognition of notional time, as thousands of insured persons seek to complete the required 40 years of insurance and leave with a full pension at the age of 62.
In fact, there are quite a few who, despite leaving active insurance, continue to work even after retirement, making use of the current institutional framework.
The above figures become even more significant when combined with the huge increase in retirement applications. In the first half of 2026 alone, new applications to EFKA are estimated to have reached nearly 110,000, a fact that heralds yet another year of particularly high activity.
The completion of 40 years of insurance is now the main goal of most insured persons seeking to exit at 62, even if this means they will have to pay amounts that in many cases exceed 15,000 or even 20,000 euros for the recognition of the required time.
As lawyer Aspasia Papathanasopoulou points out to Euro2day.gr, the current insurance regime has led more and more insured persons to the recognition of notional periods.
“Thus, as the landscape of retirement conditions has been shaped, with the main version being the completion of the 62nd year of age and 40 years of insurance in total, many will need to recognize notional insurance periods – children, studies, insurance gaps and military service – in order to complete the required 40 years or 12,000 insurance days,” she says.
Ms. Papathanasopoulou reminds that before Law 4387/2016 the buyback cost for children, studies and insurance gaps was fixed, regardless of earnings or insurance category, while for military service it was linked to the insured person's salary. In addition, lump-sum payment was accompanied by a 15% discount.
After the implementation of Law 4387/2016, as amended by Law 4670/2020, the cost is calculated differently:
- For employees it corresponds to 20% of the earnings of the last month of full employment before the application.
- For self-employed professionals it is equal to the main insurance contribution of the insurance category selected in the last month before the application.
- In the case of lump-sum payment, the discount is now set at 2% for each recognized year. On the contrary, when installment payment is chosen, repayment is made by withholding one quarter of the monthly pension until the amount is paid off.
- For civil servants a transitional regime applies for those who had submitted an application by the end of 2016, while from January 1, 2020 the cost has also been set at 20% of the pensionable earnings of the month in which the application is submitted.
According to Ms. Papathanasopoulou, the current framework creates an incentive for the buyback of a larger number of months, since the more the recognized time increases, the greater the total discount on the lump-sum payment. However, the total cost may amount to several thousand or even tens of thousands of euros, which leads many insured persons either to payment in installments or to the option of withholding from the future pension.
Examples showing the real cost
Private-sector employee with a salary of 1,800 euros
An insured person earning 1,800 euros pays 360 euros for each month recognized. For the buyback of 36 months due to two children, the initial cost is 12,960 euros. With the 6% discount of lump-sum payment, the final amount is reduced to 12,182.40 euros. If he wishes to recognize one year of military service, he will ultimately pay 4,233.60 euros instead of 4,320 euros.
Private-sector employee with a salary of 2,150 euros
With a monthly buyback cost of 430 euros: The recognition of four years of studies initially costs 20,640 euros, but with an 8% discount the amount is set at 18,988.80 euros. For one year of military service, 5,056.80 euros are ultimately required.
Civil servant with an application in 2016: For a public-sector insured person with October 2011 earnings of 1,850 euros, the cost was significantly lower. The recognition of four years of studies cost about 5,864 euros after the discount. The recognition of one year of military service about 1,562 euros.
Civil servant with an application in 2018 and earnings of 2,150 euros: The three years for two children cost about 9,706 euros after the discount. The one year of military service about 3,373 euros.
Civil servant with an application from 2020 onwards. Under the new system, for the same earnings: The three years due to two children now cost 14,551.20 euros. The one year of military service is set at 5,056.80 euros. The comparison clearly shows that the buyback cost after 2020 is significantly higher compared to the transitional regimes of previous years.
What applies in TSAY - TSMEDE
Ms. Papathanasopoulou also presents examples for insured persons of the former TSAY based on the insurance categories of 2026.
The monthly buyback cost amounts to:
- 185.09 euros in the 1st category,
- 222.12 euros in the 2nd,
- 281.82 euros in the 3rd,
- 440.64 euros in the 5th.
As the distinguished lawyer points out, in the case of recognition of, for example, 18 months, the higher the insurance category, the more the future pension increases.
More specifically:
- with recognition in the 1st category the gross pension is set at 1,176.44 euros,
- in the 2nd category at 1,182.44 euros,
- in the 3rd category at 1,310.52 euros,
- while in the 5th category it reaches 1,488.10 euros gross.
The prescribed healthcare contributions, tax and, where applicable, the pensioners' solidarity contribution are withheld from the pension
The picture is similar for insured persons of the former TSMEDE as well.
The full pension at 62 is set:
- at 1,367.85 euros gross when the recognition is made in the 6th insurance category, with a buyback cost of 597.06 euros per month,
- at 1,301.41 euros with recognition in the 5th category,
- at 1,208.60 euros with recognition in the 2nd category.
At the same time, intermediate scenarios arise when the insured person is currently in the 6th category but recognizes the notional time in the 2nd, leading to a gross pension of 1,241.37 euros or even 1,273.66 euros when the stay in the high category continues in 2027 as well.