You are in
The system allows you to verify that you meet the requirements for claiming an advance pension payment, the so-called Social APE.
Whatsapp
Twitter
Facebook
LinkedinPrivate employees - Civil Servants- Workers enrolled in Separate Pension Scheme
-
-
This service is also available in
Publication: 13 February 2023 Latest update: 19 April 2023
What is it?
Article 1, paragraphs 179 to 186, of the 2017 Budget Law and subsequent amendments and additions provides for a benefit to be paid by the State disbursed by INPS, within the limits of expenditure, to parties who meet certain conditions required by law, who have reached at least 63 years of age and who are not already holders of a direct pension in Italy or abroad.
The benefit, known as the Social APE is paid, following a claim, until the age for old-age pension is reached, or until an early pension is obtained or benefits obtained earlier than the age for old-age pension referred to in Article 24, paragraph 6, of Decree-Law no. 201 of 6 December 2011, converted by Law no. 214 of 22 December 2011 (the so-called Monti-Fornero Law).
It is an experimental measure in force since 1 May 2017 whose expiry, following subsequent regulatory additions (the most recent of which with Article 1, paragraphs 288, 289, 290 and 291, Law no. 197 of 29 December 2022), has been extended until 31 December 2023.
Who is it aimed at?
The Social APE benefit is payable to workers enrolled in the Compulsory General Insurance of employed workers, in both its exclusive and substitute forms, to the special pension schemes of self-employed workers and to the Separate Pension Scheme referred to in Article 2, paragraph 26, of Law no. 335 of 8 August 1995, who:
a) are unemployed as a result of termination of the employment relationship due to dismissal, even collective dismissal, resignation due to just cause or termination by mutual consent in the context of the procedure referred to in Article 7 of Law no. 604 of 15 July 1966, or due to the expiry of the term of the fixed-term employment relationship provided they have had, in the 36 months prior to the termination of the relationship, periods of employment for at least 18 months, have received the full unemployment benefit due to them and have a contributory seniority of at least 30 years;
b) are supporting, at the time of the request and for at least six months, the spouse or a first-degree relative living with them with a severe disability (pursuant to Article 3, paragraph 3, of Law no. 104 of 5 February 1992), or a relative or a second-degree relative by marriage living with them if the parents or spouse of the person with a severe disability have reached 70 years of age or are also suffering from disabling diseases or have died or are absent, and have a contributory seniority of at least 30 years;
c) have a reduced capability for work, ascertained by the competent committees for the recognition of civilian invalidity, greater than or equal to 74% and have a contributory seniority of at least 30 years;
d) are employed workers, at the time the benefit commences, who have a contributory seniority of at least 36 years and who have carried out for at least seven years in the last ten, or at least six years in the last seven, one or more of the following professions (so-called strenuous professions), referred to in Annex 3 of Law no. 234/2021:
- teachers at primary school, pre-primary school and similar professions;
- health technicians;
- personnel involved in the management of warehouses and similar professions;
- skilled professions in health and social services;
- beauty service professionals;
- skilled professions in personal services and similar services;
- artisans, skilled workers and farmers;
- operators of plants and machinery for the extraction and initial treatment of minerals;
- operators of plants for the transformation and hot working of metals;
- operators of furnaces and other plants for the processing of glass, ceramics and similar materials;
- operators of plants for the transformation of wood and the manufacture of paper;
- operators of machinery and plants for the refining of gas and oil products, for basic and fine chemicals and for the manufacture of products derived from chemicals;
- operators of plants for the production of thermal energy and steam, for the recovery of waste and for the treatment and distribution of water;
- mill and kneading machine operators;
- operators of furnaces and similar plants for the thermal treatment of minerals;
- semi-skilled workers of fixed machinery for mass production and assembly workers;
- operators of fixed machinery in agriculture and the food industry;
- drivers of vehicles, mobile machinery and lifting equipment;
- unskilled personnel involved in the movement and delivery of goods;
- unskilled personnel in services for cleaning offices, hotels, ships, restaurants, public areas and vehicles;
- porters and similar professions;
- unskilled professions in agriculture, green maintenance, animal farming, forestry and fishing;
- unskilled professions in manufacturing, mineral extraction and construction.
For the purposes of granting the benefit, the contribution requirements requested in letters a) to d) are reduced, for women, by 12 months for each child, up to a maximum of two years.
How does it work?
START DATE AND DURATION
The Social APE benefit starts on the first day of the month following the one in which the claim for access to the benefit was submitted, provided that all requirements and conditions stipulated by law, including termination of employment, have been met by that date.
The Social APE is paid every month for 12 months in the year, until the recipient reaches the age at which old-age pension can be claimed, or until a direct pension is obtained in advance or received prior to the age for an old-age pension.
In order to assess whether the allocated financial resources are sufficient to cover the benefit with respect to the number of those entitled to the benefit, monitoring is carried out. Monitoring is carried out by assessing the individuals who are closest to the old-age requirement. If two claimants have the same age the assessment is then based on the date at which the claim was submitted for recognition of the conditions.
WHAT AM I ENTITLED TO?
The benefit, in the case of enrolment in a single scheme, is equal to the amount of the monthly pension instalment calculated at the time of access to the benefit (if this is less than 1,500 euro) or equal to 1,500 euro (if the pension is equal to or greater than this amount). The amount of the benefit is not reassessed, nor combined with the minimum payment.
If an individual paid or credited a contribution, for any reason, to more than one scheme, among those participating in the Social APE scheme, the calculation of the monthly pension instalment is made proportionally for each pension scheme, in relation to the respective enrolment periods completed, according to the calculation rules provided for in each system and based on the respective reference salaries.
During the period in which the recipient receives the benefit, no imputed contribution is due.
The Social APE benefit is terminated in the event of the death of the holder and cannot be transferred to the survivors.
Beneficiaries are not entitled to Family Allowances (ANF).
Claim
REQUIREMENTS
To obtain the benefit, individuals that satisfy the conditions indicated by law must, at the time of the claim for access, fulfil the following requirements:
- be at least 63 years of age;
- have at least 30 years of contributory seniority; for workers who carry out so-called strenuous activities, the minimum contributory seniority required is 36 years. For the purposes of granting the benefit, the contribution requirements are reduced, for women, by 12 months for each child, up to a maximum of two years. For construction workers identified with the ISTAT codes in Annex 3, as specified in the CCNL (National Collective Labour Agreement) for builders employed in construction and similar companies, for ceramists (ISTAT classification 6.3.2.1.2) and for the plant operators for the moulding of ceramic and terracotta items (ISTAT classification 7.1.3.3) the requirement of contributory seniority for access to the Social APE is reduced to at least 32 years;
- not be holders of any direct pension.
Access to the benefit is also subject to termination of employment, self-employment or para-subordinate work carried out in Italy or abroad.
The benefit is not compatible with income support benefits related to involuntary unemployment, with the unemployment allowance (ASDI), or the allowance for the termination of commercial activities.
However, it is compatible with the performance of employed or para-subordinate work but only if the relative income earned does not exceed 8 thousand euro (gross) per year and with self-employment within the income limit of 4,800 euro (gross) per year. If the so-determined annual limit is exceeded, the individual will lose the Social APE; the compensation received during the year in which the excess occurred will become undue and the INPS Office will recover it.
HOW CAN I CLAIM?
Individuals who, by 31 December 2023 will meet or could meet the requirements provided for by law must, prior to the claim for the benefit, submit a claim for recognition of the conditions for access to the benefit by 31 March 2023, 15 July 2023 and, in any case, no later than 30 November 2023.
At the same time, or pending the evaluation of the claim for recognition of the conditions for access to the Social APE, the individual already in possession of all the envisaged requirements, including the termination of work, may submit the claim for access to the benefit, in order not to lose accrued benefits.
Claims, both for recognition of the conditions for access to the Social APE, and for access to the benefit, must be addressed to the relevant local INPS offices and submitted electronically using the usual institutional channels.
For the evaluation of the claims, a specific protocol has been prepared, jointly by the Ministry of Labour and Social Policies, INPS, INAIL (National Insurance Institute for Employment), ANPAL (National Agency for Active Labour Policies) and INL (National Labour Inspectorate). This identifies the methods by which to exchange data with the other bodies, the methods by which to check the declarations made by the claimants and the employers, and the cases in which INPS may avail itself of the National Labour Inspectorate.
Processing times of the decision
The ordinary deadline for issuing the decisions is set at 30 days under Law no. 241/1990. In some cases the law may set different deadlines.