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Steps to follow after the death of a pensioner
Procedures
You may have asked yourself on some occasion what happens to the pension when a retiree dies and what procedures family members must carry out. The first thing, without a doubt, is to communicate it to Social Security. Below we solve the most common doubts.
1.- Is it necessary to communicate the death of a pensioner family member?
Always. The regulations oblige the pensioner to communicate to the Managing Entity (normally, the National Institute of Social Security, INSS) variations both of an economic nature, such as changes in data or changes in family situation. Logically, the death of the pensioner will be communicated by the relatives and it is mandatory to communicate it in any case. The omission of the obligation may be grounds for infringement.
2.- Where do you have to communicate it?
In case of death of the pensioner, it must be communicated through the Electronic Headquarters of Social Security, attaching the death certificate of the pensioner Citizen Detail (seg-social.gob.es). You can also communicate at any of the Social Security Attention and Information Centres (CAISS) of the National Institute of Social Security of the national network for which you can request an appointment. If you want to know how this service works, check out our practical guide.
If the pensioner resides abroad, notification of the death must be made to the Provincial Directorate of the INSS that manages his pension or to the Labour Ministry of the Embassy of Spain in his place of residence.
To avoid undue charges, pensioners who reside abroad must present proof of experience or life once a year during the first calendar quarter in order to continue receiving their retirement pension.
3.- What procedures and documentation do I have to provide and within what period?
It is only necessary to provide the pensioner’s death certificate. The medical death certificate is the official document that certifies the death of a person and the date and place where it occurred. It is issued by the doctor and, subsequently, it must be presented to the Civil Registry, for registration.
The deadline to communicate these changes is 30 working days (excluding Saturdays, Sundays or holidays) from the death.
4.- What will be the financial settlement of the deceased’s pension?
Social Security pensions are accrued by natural monthly payments and are satisfied in 14 payments, 12 ordinary and 2 extraordinary.
Ordinary monthly payments are paid in full, including that corresponding to the month in which the right is extinguished. Therefore, when a pensioner dies, Social Security pays him the full month, regardless of the day he died.
5.- Are you entitled to subsequent extraordinary pay?
Entitlement is generated to the proportional part of the corresponding extraordinary pay from the last received until the month in which the death occurs. The following rules apply for the calculation:
If it corresponds to the month of June, it will be paid in the proportion of one sixth for each of the months between the month of December of the previous year and the month in which the pension is suspended or the cause of extinction of it, both inclusive.
If it corresponds to the month of November, it will be paid in the proportion of one sixth for each of the months between the month of June of the same year and the month in which the suspension of the receipt of the pension or the cause of extinction occurs, both inclusive.
This extraordinary payment will be paid, together with the last monthly pension to which you were entitled if the death leave has been processed on time. In another case, the payment of the extra payment must be requested as accrued and not received.
6.- Can I claim the amounts unduly charged?
Yes. Persons who have unduly received Social Security benefits are obliged to refund their amount.
Those who, by action or omission, have contributed to making such perceptions possible, will respond subsidiarily with the recipients of the refund of these, unless good faith is proven.
Collecting the pension of a deceased over time, hiding this information from the Administration, is a crime against Social Security that can lead to criminal sanctions.
7.- Can the death of the pensioner family member give rise to another pension?
The death of a family member who was a beneficiary of a pension can generate the right to collect other pensions, such as the widow’s or orphan’s pension, also called death and survivor’s benefits, which arise with the death of the former. Death and survivors’ benefits are intended to compensate for the situation of economic need that occurs for certain people, the death of others. You can request them electronically through the Your Social Security portal with a digital certificate and through the platform for procedures without a certificate if you do not have it.
Another benefit to which you may be entitled is the Social Security death assistance: Useful Information (seg-social.es). It is an aid that consists of a single payment (€46.50) to meet part of the expenses involved in a funeral and that can be requested up to 5 years after death.
