Social Security has corrected the criteria that, since the beginning of 2026, toughened the cut applied to maximum pensions in cases of voluntary early retirement. In this way, the calculation method in these cases is again as it was before. regulating Law 21/2021in such a way that those who advance their retirement age and, after applying a cut, their resulting pension exceeds the maximum pension set, a more gradual cut will be applied than the one applied directly since January.
Since the entry into force of the reform, the reducing coefficients stopped operating on the regulatory basis and began to operate on the theoretical amount of the pension, a modification designed so that the economic punishment would also be felt in the highest incomes, as explained by the Social Security official, Alfonso Muñoz Cuenca. The objective of this reform, like the following ones we have had, such as Royal Decree 2/2023, was to discourage voluntary early retirement in order to bring the real retirement age closer to the ordinary age.
The rule itself, however, included a safeguard. Social Security established a transitional period of ten years for cases in which, once the pension was calculated, the amount remained above the maximum legal limit. During that period, the reduction on the maximum pension had to be applied with specific coefficients, precisely to avoid a sudden jump with respect to the previous system.
A technical change with a real effect on the amount
The problem came when, at the start of 2026, the interpretation began to spread that this gradual protection had been absorbed by the evolution of the maximum pension cap. In practice, this meant moving to the general coefficients of article 208 of the General Social Security Law, which were higher in certain cases, meaning that more amounts were lost in the pension. For those who planned to retire up to 24 months earlier, the difference could translate into several hundred euros less per month.
Now, with this change, the reduction will be more progressive, that is, little by little and will increase over the years. Be clear that the cut persists, but is reapplied with the transitional architecture provided for pensions that exceed the maximum, a mechanism that already appeared both on the official benefits website and in the INSS management criteria on this transitional provision. In fact, Law 21/2021, the cuts for 2026 would be the following:
| Months of Advance | Less than 38 years and 6 months of contributions | Between 38 years and 6 m. and 41 years and 6 m. quoted | Between 41 years and 6 m. and 44 years and 6 m. quoted | More than 44 years and 6 months of contributions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 24 | 9.10% | 8.50% | 7.90% | 6.70% |
| 23 | 8.08% | 7.75% | 7.30% | 6.40% |
| 22 | 7.20% | 7.00% | 6.80% | 6.10% |
| 21 | 6.22% | 6.05% | 5.88% | 5.45% |
| 20 | 5.75% | 5.60% | 5.45% | 5.21% |
| 19 | 5.38% | 5.25% | 5.12% | 4.97% |
| 18 | 4.74% | 4.62% | 4.50% | 4.38% |
| 17 | 4.50% | 4.39% | 4.28% | 4.17% |
| 16 | 4.30% | 4.20% | 4.10% | 4.00% |
| 15 | 3.78% | 3.69% | 3.60% | 3.51% |
| 14 | 3.64% | 3.55% | 3.46% | 3.38% |
| 13 | 3.51% | 3.43% | 3.35% | 3.27% |
| 12 | 3.05% | 2.98% | 2.90% | 2.83% |
| 11 | 2.95% | 2.88% | 2.81% | 2.74% |
| 10 | 2.87% | 2.80% | 2.73% | 2.67% |
| 9 | 2.44% | 2.38% | 2.31% | 2.25% |
| 8 | 2.37% | 2.31% | 2.25% | 2.19% |
| 7 | 2.31% | 2.25% | 2.19% | 2.14% |
| 6 | 1.90% | 1.85% | 1.79% | 1.74% |
| 5 | 1.85% | 1.80% | 1.74% | 1.69% |
| 4 | 1.80% | 1.75% | 1.70% | 1.65% |
| 3 | 1.41% | 1.36% | 1.31% | 1.26% |
| 2 | 1.36% | 1.32% | 1.27% | 1.23% |
| 1 | 1.33% | 1.28% | 1.24% | 1.19% |
What it means for future retirees
The most immediate effect is that the penalty is reduced for those who have long contribution careers and high salaries. It is not about recovering the rules prior to the reform, but about returning to the gradual landing that the legislator had foreseen when changing the system. This nuance restores some certainty to those who were already in the final phase of planning their early retirement.
Keep in mind that this does not eliminate the penalties (something that has been denounced Asjubi40 and which has been brought to the Congress of Deputies through a Non-Law Proposition), but it does prevent the cut from being high on the maximum pension.