|
MINISTERS’ DEPUTIES |
CM Documents |
CM(2024)162 |
18 September 2024[1] |
|
1510th meeting, 23 October 2024 11 Programme, Budget and Administration
11.2 Review of the staff contribution rates to the pension schemes and early retirement coefficients Overview Item to be considered by the GR-PBA at its meeting on 10 October 2024 |
1. Permanent staff of the Council of Europe are covered by one of the following three pension schemes:
- the Co-ordinated Pension Scheme (CPS), for staff recruited before 1 January 2003;
- the New Pension Scheme (NPS), for staff recruited between 1 January 2003 and 31 March 2013; or
- the Third Pension Scheme (TPS), for staff recruited on or after 1 April 2013.
Review of the staff contribution rates
2. Article 41 of the CPS, the NPS and the TPS provide the method for establishing staff contribution rates to the pension schemes. In application of Article 41, actuarial studies are conducted every five years and the staff contribution rate is adjusted accordingly, with effect from the fifth anniversary of the preceding adjustment. The last adjustment to the staff contribution took effect on 1 January 2020; therefore, the next adjustment should enter into force on 1 January 2025.
3. For the CPS, the review of the contribution rate is subject to a decision by the Committee of Ministers, based on a recommendation of the Co-ordinating Committee on Remuneration (CCR). For the NPS and the TPS, the review is also subject to a decision by the Committee of Ministers, based on favourable technical opinions of the Pensions Administrative Committee of the Co-ordinated Organisations (CAPOC).
4. For the CPS, the CCR recommended to increase the staff contribution rate from 11.8% to 12.5%. Full details on this review are contained in the 342nd CCR report, as set out in document CM(2024)147.
5. For the NPS, at its 218th meeting in March 2024, CAPOC reviewed the staff contribution rate and gave a technical opinion favourable to its increase from 11.8% to 13%. Full details on this review are contained in the CAPOC technical opinion, as set out in document CM(2024)148.
6. For the TPS, at its 217th meeting in December 2023, CAPOC reviewed the staff contribution rate and gave a technical opinion favourable to its increase from 10.6% to 12.4%. Full details on this review are contained in the CAPOC technical opinion, as set out in document CM(2024)149.
7. The Secretary General proposes to amend Article 41 of the CPS on the basis of the 342nd CCR report, and Article 41 of the NPS and of the TPS on the basis of CAPOC’s aforementioned technical opinions of December 2023 and March 2024.
Early retirement coefficients
8. The CPS, the NPS and the TPS provide an option for early retirement, subject to a reduction in the pension which corresponds to the age at which the staff member retires. The reduction coefficients applicable in the event of early retirement of staff covered by the CPS and the NPS are defined in Article 8 of the CPS and of the NPS, whereas the reduction coefficients applicable in the event of early retirement of staff covered by the TPS are contained in instructions by the Secretary General. In both the CPS and the NPS, the coefficients are set out in a table which specifies, depending on the age group, the reduction corresponding to the age of early retirement. The reduction coefficients are reviewed regularly on the basis of actuarial studies.
9. For the CPS, the review of the early retirement coefficients is subject to a decision by the Committee of Ministers, based on a recommendation of the CCR. Full details on the current review are contained in the 342nd CCR report (cf. document CM(2024)147).
10. For the NPS, the review is also subject to a decision by the Committee of Ministers, based on a favourable technical opinion of CAPOC, under Articles 43 and 44 of the NPS rules. At its 218th meeting in March 2024, CAPOC reviewed and gave a favourable technical opinion to the method for calculating the early retirement coefficients applicable to staff members affiliated to the NPS, distributed into five age groups. Full details on this review are contained in the CAPOC technical opinion, as set out in document CM(2024)148. The review results in revised early retirement coefficients for the NPS, which are set out in the tables contained in document CM(2024)148. Moreover, CAPOC recommended the amendment of paragraph 4 of Article 8 of the NPS by the addition of a mention that adjustments to the early retirement coefficients shall be applied in conjunction with adjustments to the contribution rate, as set out in document CM(2024)148.
11. For the TPS, the review is subject to instructions by the Secretary General, based on a CAPOC technical opinion. Consequently, a decision of the Committee of Ministers is not required.
13. In accordance with Article 13.4 of the Staff Regulations, the Staff Committee has been consulted on the draft decisions proposed for adoption (cf. item 3 c. GR-PBA(2024)15 – to be issued shortly).