The solidarity allowance for the elderly (Aspa), formerly called minimum old age, is a device that allows retirees aged 65, and with low resources, to inflate their pension. This allowance is paid by the National Old Age Insurance Fund (Cnav) or by the Mutualité sociale agricole (MSA) for farmers. But beware. As it is an allowance and not a pension, the sums that have been advanced are recovered at the time of the succession, under certain conditions, reports Capital.

This means that in certain cases, the heirs of a person who received the Aspa will have to repay the sums collected. However, this reimbursement scheme only applies if the net amount of the estate assets is greater than 39,000 euros.

By net assets of the estate, we mean the amount of assets (real estate, furniture or even the sums held in bank accounts) from which debts and funeral expenses are deducted (within the limit of 1,500 euros), specifies Retirement clear. If this amount is less than 39,000 euros, the heirs therefore have nothing to pay. In a specific case, this ceiling reaches 100,000 euros in Guadeloupe, Guyana, Martinique, Réunion and Mayotte.

Thus, if the inheritance assets exceed the ceiling, the heirs will have to reimburse the sums which exceed this threshold. For an estate asset of the deceased reaching 40,000 euros, there will only be 1,000 euros to be reimbursed, and 11,000 euros for a net estate asset of up to 50,000 euros. Importantly, the sums claimed cannot exceed 6,939.60 euros per year for a single person and 9,216.99 euros for a couple of beneficiaries.

But beware, “the recovery time cannot be greater than the time for receiving the aid either”, specifies Philippe Bainville, CNAV press officer. For a person who has received the Aspa for three years, the heirs will not be able to reimburse more than three years, this represents 20,818.7 euros, or times the threshold of 6,939.60 euros, for a single person. To reimburse the allowance, only the estate is considered, never the assets of the heirs.

There are exceptions to the reimbursement of the Aspa. This can “be deferred if the heir is the spouse or a person who was still dependent on him”, specifies Philippe Bainville. When it is a couple, the pension fund waits for the death of the widow or widower to demand the recovery of the sums allocated.