In short and in plain language
The active pension has existed since 2026. If you have reached pension age and keep working as an employee, part of your pay is free of tax.
This does not apply to mini-jobs. It does not apply to the self-employed either. And it only starts in the month after you reach pension age.
Many tradespeople want to help out in the business for a few days a week after they retire. For example with training, with measuring at a customer's home or with small repairs.
A business can show this on its careers page. The page says what work there is, on how many days and who looks after it.
Please ask a tax advisor about tax.
A journeyman who has been with the firm for decades knows every heating system in town, knows which customer to call ahead, and trained many of today's journeymen himself. When he reaches the standard retirement age, the business loses more than a pair of hands. Since 1 January 2026 (BMF, FAQ zur Aktivrente) there has been a new reason to talk about staying on: wages earned after reaching the standard retirement age remain tax-free up to 24,000 euros a year (Section 3 no. 21 EStG) if the job is subject to social insurance. The federal government calls this the active pension, or Aktivrente. For trade businesses it is a reason to stop negotiating continued employment in the break room and to offer it openly instead: as a section of its own on the careers page, with roles, hours and a named contact. This article shows what the rule covers and what it does not, which employment law routes exist and how to build the section without drifting into tax advice.
Key takeaways
- From the month after reaching the standard retirement age, wages are tax-free up to 24,000 euros a year if the employer pays pension insurance contributions (Section 3 no. 21 EStG). In payroll that means up to 2,000 euros a month (BMF, FAQ zur Aktivrente).
- Mini-jobs and self-employment are excluded. That affects many people: 65 percent of pensioners aged 65 to 74 who work as employees are in marginal employment (Destatis, Mikrozensus 2025).
- Anyone who retired early can only use the active pension from the month after reaching the standard retirement age. For people born in 1960 that age is 66 years and 4 months (Section 235 SGB VI).
- Former staff may be rehired on fixed-term contracts without objective reason after the standard retirement age, up to eight years and twelve contracts in total (Section 41(2) SGB VI). Postponing the end of a contract is agreed before it expires.
- The careers page section names roles such as supporting apprentices, measuring and customer service, plus hours and a named contact. 62 percent of employees past the standard retirement age work part-time (Bundesagentur für Arbeit).
- The ad invites experienced staff without excluding younger people (Section 11 AGG), does not ask for a date of birth and refers tax questions to a tax advisor instead of promising net amounts.
What the active pension covers
The active pension is not a pension component but a tax allowance. The Income Tax Act exempts income from employment up to a total of 24,000 euros a year (Section 3 no. 21 EStG) insofar as it is paid for work from the month after reaching the standard retirement age. The second condition is in the same sentence: the employer must pay statutory pension insurance contributions for this work. That is the case in a regular job subject to social insurance, even if the person is exempt from insurance because they draw a full pension. The employer then still pays half of the contribution (Section 172(1) SGB VI) that would be due if the employee were insured.
The law states an annual amount, while payroll works month by month. For each calendar month in which the conditions were not met, the allowance is reduced by one twelfth (Section 3 no. 21 EStG), and in payroll tax it is applied pro rata. The Federal Ministry of Finance sums this up in its questions and answers: wages remain tax-free up to 2,000 euros a month (BMF, FAQ zur Aktivrente). Unused amounts cannot be carried over to other months; the active pension applies month by month.
An example from the same catalog: someone who earns 2,500 euros a month and meets the conditions has 2,000 euros tax-free, and the remaining 500 euros (BMF, FAQ zur Aktivrente) are taxable wages. The active pension does not change social insurance contributions; the ministry states explicitly that it has no effect on liability for social insurance. The catalog also notes that the employer is obliged to apply the allowance in payroll tax and reports the tax-free amounts on the electronic payroll tax certificate.
Not tax advice and not legal advice
Who in the business benefits and who does not
The rule covers employees who have reached the standard retirement age and work in an employed job subject to social insurance. Whether they already draw an old-age pension makes no difference. According to the ministry's questions and answers, only the job currently held counts: even someone who used to be self-employed can use the active pension once they take up a job subject to social insurance. For trade businesses that is more than a footnote. A former owner who stays on as an employee of the successor after the handover can fall under the rule if the employment is subject to social insurance.
- Mini-jobs do not qualify because flat-rate social insurance contributions are paid there, regardless of whether payroll tax is levied at a flat rate or according to the individual tax data.
- Income from self-employment is excluded, including the owner who keeps working in their own sole proprietorship.
- Time before the standard retirement age does not count: anyone who retired at 63 or earlier can only use the active pension from the month after reaching the standard retirement age.
- Income that is already tax-free under other provisions stays under those provisions; they take precedence over the active pension (Section 3 no. 21 EStG).
The exclusion of mini-jobs affects a large group. According to the first results of the 2025 microcensus, 14 percent (Destatis, Mikrozensus 2025) of pensioners aged 65 to 74 were in work. Of those working as employees, 65 percent (Destatis, Mikrozensus 2025) said they were marginally employed, and 27 percent (Destatis, Mikrozensus 2025) of working pensioners were self-employed. Neither group benefits from the exemption. By contrast, the transition zone above the mini-job threshold does qualify, which in 2026 means monthly earnings from 603.01 to 2,000 euros (BMF, FAQ zur Aktivrente).
Whether an existing mini-job should be converted into a job in the transition zone is a calculation for the payroll office: the conversion brings regular social insurance contributions, set against the tax exemption. Employees who draw a full pension after reaching the standard retirement age are exempt from pension insurance but can waive the exemption by notifying their employer (Section 5(4) SGB VI). There is no blanket answer, and it does not belong on the careers page either.
When the standard retirement age is reached depends on the year of birth. For people born in 1964 or later it is 67 years (Section 35 SGB VI). For earlier years it rises in steps (Section 235 SGB VI). The overview below shows the birth years now moving into the standard retirement age:
| Year of birth | Standard retirement age (Sections 235 and 35 SGB VI) |
|---|---|
| 1959 | 66 years and 2 months |
| 1960 | 66 years and 4 months |
| 1961 | 66 years and 6 months |
| 1962 | 66 years and 8 months |
| 1963 | 66 years and 10 months |
| 1964 or later | 67 years |
Why the trades should look at this now
In the skilled trades, staffing is among the most pressing issues. 75 percent (Bitkom 2025) of the 504 trade businesses surveyed see the shortage of skilled workers as a central problem, and 47 percent (Bitkom 2025) name business succession as a current problem. The German Confederation of Skilled Crafts expects employment in the trades to keep falling in 2026 (ZDH-Konjunkturbericht 2/2025) as well, because many employees are leaving working life for reasons of age and businesses cannot find enough skilled workers and apprentices.
The big wave is still to come. By 2039, around 13.4 million (Destatis 2025) people in the labor force will have passed the statutory retirement age of 67, which is 31 percent (Destatis 2025) of the 2024 labor force. In building services and utility occupations, which include plumbing, heating and air conditioning, 30 percent (Bundesagentur für Arbeit) of working-age employees in jobs subject to social insurance were aged 55 to under 65 in June 2025; the employment agency counts people from age 55 as older workers. What a website for these trades looks like is shown on the page on web design for plumbing and heating.
At the same time, more people work beyond age 65 than in the past. In June 2025, around 721,000 (Bundesagentur für Arbeit) people aged 65 or older were in jobs subject to social insurance; their number had more than tripled (Bundesagentur für Arbeit) compared with June 2015. People rarely keep working for a single reason. In the supplementary module of the 2023 EU labor force survey, 29 percent (Destatis, Arbeitskräfteerhebung 2023) of working pensioners aged 65 to 74 named enjoying their work as the main reason, and for 9 percent (Destatis, Arbeitskräfteerhebung 2023) contact with colleagues was decisive.
The ZDH describes both sides on its page on old-age provision: many trade occupations are physically demanding, which is why many workers retire before the regular age limit. Others can and want to keep working after reaching pension age, for example part-time. The association calls the active pension a sensible step to keep skilled workers in businesses for longer. For the careers page this means the section does not offer a continuation of the full-time job on the roof, but roles that need experience and spare the body.
Setting up continued employment properly under employment law
If the employment contract provides that employment ends when the standard retirement age is reached, there are several ways to keep or bring back an experienced journeyman or master craftsman. The careers page does not have to explain them, but it should fit all of them so that the conversation afterwards does not founder on the type of contract.
| Route | Legal basis | What matters |
|---|---|---|
| Postpone the end of the contract | Section 41(1) SGB VI | Agreement during the current employment, possible more than once; conclude it before the existing end date |
| Rehire former staff on a fixed term | Section 41(2) SGB VI and Section 14(2) TzBfG | no objective reason needed despite earlier employment; each contract up to two years with no more than three extensions, up to eight years and twelve contracts in total |
| Continue part-time on an open-ended basis | Employment contract | Agree new hours and tasks; for the active pension the job must be subject to social insurance |
Postponing is the simplest route for your own people. Employer and employee agree during the employment that it will end later, more than once if needed (Section 41(1) SGB VI). Timing is what counts: the agreement is concluded while the employment is still running. Anyone who raises the subject only in the last week risks a gap, which is exactly why it pays when your own people read the offer on the careers page early on.
The second route is new. Under the Part-Time and Fixed-Term Employment Act, a fixed term without objective reason is permitted for up to two years, with no more than three extensions within that period (Section 14(2) TzBfG), but as a rule not if there has already been an employment relationship with the same employer. For employees who have reached the standard retirement age this ban on follow-on contracts does not apply, as long as the fixed terms together cover no more than eight years and twelve fixed-term contracts (Section 41(2) SGB VI). The federal government lists the lifting of the ban among the new rules of January 2026 and calls it a labor market basis for the active pension (Bundesregierung).
Talk early rather than just before the farewell
The "still on board after retirement" section on the careers page
Careers pages in the trades usually address journeymen who want to switch jobs and school leavers looking for an apprenticeship. What the page looks like for these two groups is covered in the articles on the careers page that brings in applications and on the apprenticeship page. This article is about a third group: skilled workers who are reaching or have reached the standard retirement age and would keep working if someone asked them.
A section of its own does two jobs. Internally, it shows your own people that staying on is welcome and what it can look like, long before anyone files a pension application. Externally, it reaches experienced skilled workers in the region who stopped working elsewhere and would happily work a few days a week again. Both read the same page and want the same questions answered: What exactly would I do? On how many days? Who is my contact? Do I have to climb ladders again?
- A heading that names the offer, such as "Still on board after retirement" or "Experience wanted, including past the standard retirement age"
- Three to six roles with concrete tasks instead of general teamwork
- The possible hours: fixed days, mornings, seasonal work or project-based work
- A named contact with name, role and direct line who can also hold the conversation with long-serving colleagues
- A short, factual note on the active pension with a reference to tax advice
- A short application with few fields and no date of birth, plus the phone number for everyone who prefers to call
Hours are the most important element. 62 percent (Bundesagentur für Arbeit) of employees in social insurance jobs past the standard retirement age work part-time, compared with 31 percent (Bundesagentur für Arbeit) of all employees subject to social insurance. Among working pensioners aged 65 to 74, 40 percent (Destatis, Mikrozensus 2025) normally work less than ten hours a week. An ad that only offers full-time work misses this group; a section that names fixed days and mornings reaches it.
Roles that suit experienced staff
The roles decide whether someone feels addressed. Good roles use what an experienced journeyman or master craftsman brings and leave out what becomes hard after a long working life: heavy lifting, roof work in winter, standby duty at night. Six roles fit many trades:
Supporting apprentices
Coaching apprentices in the workshop, preparing practice pieces and drilling for the journeyman's exam. Someone who did this on the side for years can now do it with time.
Measuring and advising
Customer appointments on site, taking measurements, suggesting how to do the work and preparing the quote. Experience shows here in the questions asked before something goes wrong.
Part-time customer service
Servicing appointments, small repairs and follow-up work on fixed days, easy to plan when the business offers maintenance contracts.
Onboarding new colleagues
Introducing career changers and skilled workers from other businesses to the processes, materials and quirks of the business so they can work on their own sooner.
Workshop and preparation
Picking materials, prefabrication, tool care and vehicle fit-out, so the crews can head straight to the site in the morning.
Handover and regular customers
In a business handover, introducing the successor to regular customers and passing on the knowledge of systems and buildings that is not in any file.
Each role gets three details on the page: what is actually done, on how many days typically, and whether trips to customers are part of it. A role called only "support in the team" answers none of these questions. Four models help describe the hours and can be shown on the page as a short table:
| Model | What it looks like | Suits |
|---|---|---|
| Fixed days | specific weekdays, full days or mornings | Supporting apprentices, workshop |
| By appointment | assignments by calendar, for example for measuring and advising | Measuring, customer meetings |
| Seasonal | more hours at peak times, fewer for the rest of the year | Customer service, servicing before the heating season |
| Project-based | accompanying individual projects from measuring to acceptance | Handover, demanding renovations |
Wording: inviting, but not excluding
A section for skilled workers of pension age addresses an age group. That is permitted as long as nobody is excluded because of their age. The General Equal Treatment Act names age explicitly as a protected ground (Section 1 AGG), and a job may not be advertised in breach of the prohibition of discrimination (Section 11 AGG). In a dispute, circumstantial evidence suggesting discrimination is enough to shift the burden to the employer to prove that there was none (Section 22 AGG). The text of a job ad can be such evidence.
In practice this means the roles are advertised to everyone with the necessary experience, and the section adds that they are explicitly suitable for skilled workers past the standard retirement age as well. It avoids words like "pensioner job" or "for seniors" just as it avoids their counterpart in other ads, the "young, dynamic team". If in doubt, the business agrees the wording with its legal counsel.
| Instead of | Better |
|---|---|
| Pensioners wanted | Experienced skilled workers wanted, including past the standard retirement age |
| Mini-job for seniors | Part-time on fixed days, hours by arrangement |
| Young, dynamic team | Team of apprentices, journeymen and master craftspeople |
| Work tax-free with the active pension | Note on the active pension, details from your tax advisor |
| Application with CV and date of birth | Name, phone, trade and preferred hours |
What the page may say about the active pension
The active pension belongs on the page because for many people it is what prompts them to think about staying on. But it belongs there briefly and accurately. A business that promises "up to 2,000 euros more net" promises something it cannot know: how much tax is saved in a given case depends on the pension, other income and the type of assessment, and social insurance contributions remain. How to word tax notes on a trade website without turning them into advice is also shown in the article on the tax relief for trade services.
A note that holds up
Three things do not belong in the section: specific net amounts, statements about pension levels and recommendations on tax classes. Anyone with two jobs should know that the active pension is applied in payroll tax for only one of them, and in tax class VI only after the employee confirms it (BMF, FAQ zur Aktivrente). The payroll office settles that during the hiring conversation, not the website. For this, the payroll office mainly needs one piece of information: the month in which the employee reaches the standard retirement age.
Approach your own people and former staff first
The business already knows the most likely candidates for the section: its own journeymen and master craftspeople shortly before the standard retirement age and the former staff of recent years. For your own people, the page is a reason to talk. For former staff, it is the address you put in a letter or message, because they too can be rehired on a fixed term without objective reason after the standard retirement age (Section 41(2) SGB VI).
The short application for this section needs only a few fields: name, phone number, trade or last job, preferred hours and earliest start. It does not ask for a date of birth. It is not needed for the first contact, and personal data should be limited to what is necessary (Art. 5(1)(c) GDPR). How many fields a form in the trades can handle is described in the article on fields in the inquiry form; what the privacy policy needs to say about applications, in the article on the legal notice and privacy policy.
Photos make the section credible when they show colleagues who already work this way, and only with their consent. How to take such pictures with a phone is explained in the guide to workplace photos. If you prefer to have the pictures taken during an on-site appointment, see photos for the trade website.
How the section comes together
Talk within the business
Who will reach the standard retirement age in the next few years, who has left in recent years, which tasks are left undone? That defines the roles and the hours the business can offer.
Payroll office and legal counsel
Clarify in advance which type of contract fits, how the active pension is applied in payroll tax and which wording the ad can carry.
Write the section
Roles, hours, named contact, note on the active pension and short application; linked from every job ad and from the overview of the careers section.
Inform former staff
A letter or message with the address of the section to former staff, plus a notice in the business so your own people know about it.
Maintain it
Hide filled roles, add new ones and review the note as soon as the legal situation or the ministry's questions and answers change.
Who will reach the standard retirement age in the next few years, who has left in recent years, which tasks are left undone? That defines the roles and the hours the business can offer.
Clarify in advance which type of contract fits, how the active pension is applied in payroll tax and which wording the ad can carry.
Roles, hours, named contact, note on the active pension and short application; linked from every job ad and from the overview of the careers section.
A letter or message with the address of the section to former staff, plus a notice in the business so your own people know about it.
Hide filled roles, add new ones and review the note as soon as the legal situation or the ministry's questions and answers change.
Maintenance needs no special technology. If your website is maintained for you, pass on new or filled roles the same way as a new vacancy; what is included in maintenance and support is listed there. How job ads, the short application and the careers section fit together overall is described on the page on recruiting staff.
The careers section is part of the fixed-price website, which starts at 1,490 euros net, one-time; maintenance costs from 49 euros per month, cancelable monthly, with no minimum term. All prices net plus VAT, prices as of September 2026, details in the price overview. If you already have a website, you get an assessment in advance of whether the section can be added; send your request through the contact form.
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