Dutch pensions could rise by up to 25% for 2 million retirees

Around 2 million pensioners could see their monthly pension go up by between 12% and 25% from January, when 37 pension funds move to the new Dutch pension system.

The estimate comes from a calculation by pension consultancy Aon for public broadcaster NOS. Across the 10 biggest funds making the switch, pensioners would gain 17% on average.

In the new system, everyone gets their own pension pot instead of sharing one big fund, and pensions move with investment returns. When funds make the switch, they share out the money they have left over as a one-off boost.

Civil service pension fund ABP, the largest by far, has about 1.09 million pensioners, and Aon expects them to get 13.9% more. Estimates for the other funds range from 12.6% to 22.4%.

The figures depend on markets over the next two months, as falling interest rates or share prices would leave less to share out. “The last two months of the year are still uncertain,” Corine Reedijk of Aon told NOS.

The rise applies from January 1, with the first months paid retroactively once the final calculations are done.