Social Security has reversed the criteria that it had been applying since the beginning of 2026 in voluntary early retirements when the resulting pension exceeded the maximum amount. According to what has been learned exclusively NewsWorkthe resolution signed on March 24, 2026 by the Secretary of State for Social Security and Pensions establishes that, with effect from January 1, 2026, the provisions of the second section of transitional provision 34 of the consolidated text of the General Social Security Law once again apply, in the wording introduced by Law 21/2021.
In practice, this change means recovering the gradual cut provided for these cases and leaving behind the application of the general reducing coefficients, which were causing a higher penalty in certain maximum pensions. In addition, Social Security will automatically review the affected files and pay the corresponding arrears, so it will not be necessary to submit any application or claim.
Social Security returns to the gradual cut in maximum pensions
The resolution signed on March 24 corrects the situation that had occurred since January 1, 2026, when in practice the protection provided for in transitional provision 34.2 of the LGSS was no longer applied to those who accessed voluntary early retirement and, once their pension was calculated, exceeded the maximum amount set each year.
This provision, introduced within the pension reform, established more favorable specific reduction coefficients with progressive application over ten years. Its purpose was to prevent workers with capped pensions from suffering a double punishment, one for anticipating retirement and another for being limited by the maximum pension.
With the new internal instruction, Social Security confirms that this mechanism is again applied with effect from January 1, 2026, which benefits those who have voluntarily retired early since that date and meet the established requirements.
What will happen to the pensions already recognized from January 2026
Social Security will automatically review pensioners whose pension was recognized since January 1, 2026 without applying transitional provision 34.2, provided that they met the conditions to benefit from it.
To achieve this, they will make two changes. On the one hand, the new amount of the pension will be recalculated by applying the reducing coefficients provided for in said transitional provision. On the other hand, the arrears generated by this modification will be paid from the date of the causing event, provided that it is equal to or after January 1, 2026.
In this way, the affected retirees will recover the amounts that they have stopped receiving during these months due to the application of the most harmful criterion. In this table you can see the cuts for this year.
| 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% |
Computer systems are still adapting
Due to this change, the Social Security systems must be readapted, including Alf@, InfoAlf@, IRISS and the TUSS retirement simulator (which anyone can access).
As you have been able to know NewsWorkthese adjustments will be in production between Friday, March 27 and Monday, March 30 in ALFA and IRISS, while in the retirement simulator the adaptation could be delayed somewhat longer. For this same reason, Social Security has temporarily paralyzed the execution of premium retirement processes, in order to prevent the number of files affected by the non-application of this measure from continuing to increase.
Who can benefit from the return of arrears
The main beneficiaries will be workers who have agreed to voluntary early retirement since January 1, 2026 and whose pension, once calculated, exceeds the maximum legal amount, provided that they were within the scope of application of transitional provision 34.2. This will be the group on which the centralized review provided by Social Security will act.