Long fought over and still controversial, the pension reform has sharpened passions throughout the start of the year. Among the important measures to remember, the raising of the legal retirement age from 62 to 64, as well as the increase in the duration of insurance, have made many cringe among the French. It must be said that this news represented unpleasant surprises in the midst of inflation in the face of a substantial drop in purchasing power and the precarious situation of many retirees. However, some good surprises were on the agenda with a 5% surcharge reserved for mothers. What about fathers? Can they claim this bonus?

After being singled out as penalizing women, the pension reform had to undergo some adjustments before being adopted in the National Assembly. Among these major decisions, the surcharge reserved for mothers was greeted with enthusiasm and relief by the vast majority of French people. Reserved for active people who can justify a full rate from the age of 63, it will however experience changes, as revealed by the National Old Age Insurance Fund.

Initially planned for mothers, the maximum premium of 5% will also concern fathers. This pension bonus is so named in this way, in the document of the National Old Age Insurance Fund, consulted by our colleagues from Capital. It is therefore today a parental surcharge, which will be put in place from the start of the school year as part of the pension reform. It appears that this premium may also be granted as part of an increase in the duration of insurance for disabled children or parental leave.

Added in extremis during the debates held in the Senate, this device compensates for the birth of children and their education, which makes it possible to obtain free quarters as part of a faster obtaining of the full rate. If you are employed in the private sector, you can thus accumulate four quarters for birth and four others for education, i.e. a total of eight quarters per year.

In the case of civil servants, this figure is reduced to two quarters. However, the increase in the legal retirement age has launched a lively debate by demonstrating that the acquisition of these quarters no longer makes it possible to reach the full rate more quickly. The choice of the 5% premium was therefore imposed as compensation.

First thought for mothers, this surcharge finally takes into account the sharing of terms for education, which can now be shared between the two parents, since January 1, 2010. If these terms are assigned by default to the mother, they can be divided between the parents for the four years following the birth or adoption of the child.

In general, few fathers claim this sharing of quarters, but the pension reform could indeed put this subject on the table. Some fathers thus have the option of deciding on this sharing today in order to obtain an increase in their pension from the age of 63 and a premium of up to 5%.