13th AHV pension: why more per year can mean less per month
For certain widows' and widowers' pensions, the additional old-age pension changes the comparison. Those affected should keep the annual amount, the monthly budget and the deadline in their fund's letter apart.
The first 13th AHV old-age pension will be paid out in December 2026. For some people drawing a widow's or widower's pension, this is not simply an extra payment. The change can mean that a different type of pension is paid in future — with a lower monthly amount but a higher annual total.
On 20 October the Confederation announced a technical media briefing on the first payout. It will be held on 3 November 2026. Results from that event are not yet available. The rules governing the pension comparison, however, have already been published.
Not every AHV benefit is paid thirteen times
The additional payment applies to old-age pensions. Widows', widowers' and IV (disability) pensions continue to be paid twelve times a year. Anyone entitled to both an old-age pension and a survivors' pension does not receive both side by side. The comparison is which of the two is higher over the year. The 13th old-age pension therefore changes the calculation even when the ordinary monthly pension stays the same.
For the general supplementary benefit, one twelfth of the old-age pensions paid out in the calendar year counts. Entitlement requires an old-age pension in December. Children's and supplementary pensions, as well as the AHV 21 supplement for women of the transitional generation, are not part of the calculation basis for the 13th pension. An automatic doubling of the December payment cannot be derived from this in every case.
The official example: 20 francs more per year
How small the financial difference can be is shown by the Federal Social Insurance Office in its circular. In the example, the widow's or widower's pension is 1,281 francs a month, or 15,372 francs a year. The old-age pension is lower at 1,184 francs a month. Thirteen such amounts, however, come to 15,392 francs.
In this example the switch brings 20 francs more over the full year. At the same time the ordinary monthly amount drops by 97 francs. This is a model calculation by the authority, not the average difference and not a documented individual case.
For household planning, two questions must therefore be kept apart: how much is available in total, and when does it arrive? A higher annual total does not mean that more money comes in every month for ongoing bills. The payout rhythm remains relevant even when the annual comparison is positive.
Existing cases face a special choice
For certain survivors' pensions running on 1 January 2026 following a widowhood before 1 December 2025, the circular provides for a fresh review. Under the conditions set out there, it also covers cases involving an early-drawn old-age pension. A general right of choice for all pension recipients cannot be derived from this.
If the comparison yields a higher annual amount for the old-age pension while the monthly amount is lower, the fund informs the person concerned. That person has 30 days to respond and can keep the existing survivors' pension. Without a reply, the old-age pension with the higher annual amount is paid. The choice should therefore not be judged on the additional December payment alone.
What the Bern compensation fund has already reviewed
The compensation fund of the canton of Bern reports around 500 reviewed persons who continued to draw a survivors' pension after reaching the reference age. This figure describes the group that was reviewed. It does not mean that 500 people receive more through a switch. The press release does not give such a figure.
According to the fund, people for whom the annual comparison came out in favour of the old-age pension received a letter with their individual calculation in mid-September 2026. Bern also names the 30-day response deadline and the switch that occurs without a reply. As of 21 October 2026, the deadline for these letters may already have passed. The announced media briefing in November does not open a new Switzerland-wide response deadline.
Anyone who has received such a letter should therefore check its date, the monthly and annual amounts stated and the benefit envisaged. In case of doubt, the competent compensation fund is the right point of contact. The Bern figures describe that fund's own review and say nothing about how many people are affected across Switzerland.
The decisive point is not whether a payment carries the name "13th pension". What counts is the total entitlement, its distribution over the year and a ruling understood in time. Only together do these details show what the change means for a personal budget.
Sources
- Federal Social Insurance Office: implementation of the 13th AHV pension and questions on the survivors' pension
- Federal Social Insurance Office: circular on the 13th old-age pension, status 17 June 2026, chapters 12 and annex 2
- Compensation fund of the canton of Bern: comparison calculations for the 13th old-age pension in the case of widows' and widowers' pensions
- Confederation: announcement of the technical media briefing of 3 November 2026
