Supplementary pensions coverage in Belgium expanded to cover 4,562,000 people as at the beginning of January last year, a 2% increase to about 78% of the working population.
According to the new analysis from the Financial Services and Markets Authority (FSMA), around 86% of those receiving a supplementary pension have pension rights as employees, 7% as self-employed and 7% as employees and self-employed.
The accumulated pension rights represent a total amount of around €113bn, 4% more than in 2024, split across €79.5bn for employees and €33.5bn for the self-employed.
Pension plans in Belgium can be company-based or sectoral, with company plans dominating: the reserves built up in the business plans amount to €68bn compared with €6.7bn in the sector plans.
In 2024, almost all supplementary pensions in Belgium (99%) were paid out in the form of a single lump sum.
Second pillar participation rates are fairly high in Belgium, but the vast majority of workers have contributions below 3%, which the federal government wants to address with a minimum contribution rate of 3% for employees.
According to FSMA’s latest figures, the average capital paid out at retirement was €71,631, although the regulator noted that this overall average “hides major differences”. For example, for men, the average was €92,101, while for women, it was €40,313.
Also, the supplementary pension of members with the lowest 10% supplementary pensions amounted to an average of €143, while members with the highest 10% supplementary pensions received an average of €488,756.
There were also large differences between the professional statuses in terms of the average pension capital, according to FSMA.
IORP member numbers, assets rise
The Belgian financial supervisor publishes its overview of supplementary pensions annually in December, basing its analysis on the data recorded in the DB2P database by 31 August by insurance companies and pension funds.
It also publishes an annual summary of statistics specifically about pension funds, with more comprehensive figures than those included in the broader second pillar analysis.
In Belgium, pension funds compete with insurers in the second pillar system, with the latter dominating. Insurance companies manage around four-fifths of pension reserves in the country, according to this month’s supplementary pensions report.
According to the latest IORP report, which was published in November last year, as at the end of 2024, Belgium had 148 pension funds, down from 150 pension funds at the end of 2023.
This is part of a consolidation trend, although the IORP sector in Belgium is growing in terms of members and assets and liabilities, as the pension funds that are winding down tend to look towards multi-employer pension funds.
In 2024, the number of members in IORPs rose by 5% to 2.66 million, and the total balance sheet for Belgian pension funds stood at €48.9bn at end-2024, a 7% increase compared with the previous year.
