Survivor pensions and death benefits

It is for people who are considering, planning or carrying out a move to Spain. You will know who can claim after a death, what is needed and what to do first.

Start with "What to claim from social security after a death". It explains the death grant, the survivor pensions and when to claim. From there, move to the page that fits your case:

• "Widow's and widower's pension (pensión de viudedad) in Spain" for a surviving spouse.
• "Survivor pension for unmarried partners (pareja de hecho)" if you were not married.
• "Survivor pension when your spouse worked or married abroad" for foreign marriages and cross-border records.
• "Orphan and relative pensions after a parent dies" for children and other relatives.
• "Survivor pension rights of a divorced spouse" if you were divorced.

Inheritance and gift tax, your own retirement pension and legal succession procedures are not covered here.

Key rules

• Widow's pension rate: The widow's or widower's pension is 52% of the base reguladora, rising to 70% if you have dependent children, a disability of 65% or more, or the pension is your main income and income conditions are met.
• Orphan pension: The orphan pension is 20% of the base reguladora and is paid until age 21, or up to 25 if the orphan's income is below the minimum wage.
• Unmarried partners: An unmarried partner needs the partnership registered or in a notarial document at least 2 years before the death, plus 5 years of continuous cohabitation shown by the municipal register.
• Contribution record: For a death from common illness, the person who died must have been registered or in an equivalent situation and have contributed at least 500 days in the 5 years before death; for an accident or occupational disease there is no minimum.
• Claim timing: You can claim a survivor pension within 5 years of the death; if you claim within 3 months of the death, payment is backdated to the day after the death, and if later, only 3 months before your application.
• Contributions: For a death from common illness, the person who died needs at least 500 days of contributions in the 5 years before death.

Survivor pensions and death benefits: the whole process, step by step

From the death to the pension claim

• Get the medical death certificate from the doctor: At the time of death

• Register the death at the Registro Civil (civil registry), usually through the funeral home, and receive the death certificate: Within 24 to 72 hours of the death

• Order certified copies of the death certificate, the Last Will certificate and the death-cover insurance certificate: Request the Last Will and insurance certificates after 15 working days from the death

• Notify the social security office (INSS) and any pension payer, and return any pension paid after the death. Notify the bank too, which freezes the accounts until the inheritance paperwork is done: As soon as the certificates are in hand

• Check what you can claim, and when, in What to claim from social security after a death: Claim within 3 months of the death to be paid from the day after the death Deadline: 5 years after the death.

• Check the contribution record of the person who died, as set out in Widow's and widower's pension (pensión de viudedad) in Spain: Before you file the claim

• Check your own situation: as a spouse in Widow's and widower's pension (pensión de viudedad) in Spain, as an unmarried partner in Survivor pension for unmarried partners (pareja de hecho), as a divorced spouse in Survivor pension rights of a divorced spouse, or with foreign records in Survivor pension when your spouse worked or married abroad: Before you file the claim

• Check children's rights in Orphan and relative pensions after a parent dies: Before you file the claim; the orphan pension is paid until age 21, or up to 25 if the orphan's income is below the minimum wage

• File the survivor pension claim: Within 3 months of the death for full backdating; after that, payment goes back only 3 months before your application Deadline: 5 years after the death.

Documents you may need

Identity and residence

• Certificate of registration in the regional or municipal registry of de facto — Survivor pension for unmarried partners (pareja de hecho)
• Certificate of joint empadronamiento — Survivor pension for unmarried partners (pareja de hecho)

Income and work

• The claim form for the survivor pension — Widow's and widower's pension (pensión de viudedad) in Spain
• Tax returns and tax agency data for the year before the death — Survivor pension for unmarried partners (pareja de hecho)

Other documents

• Death certificate — Widow's and widower's pension (pensión de viudedad) in Spain, What to claim from social security after a death
• Your marriage certificate — Widow's and widower's pension (pensión de viudedad) in Spain, Survivor pension when your spouse worked or married abroad
• Your bank account details — Widow's and widower's pension (pensión de viudedad) in Spain
• Your divorce decree and maintenance order — Widow's and widower's pension (pensión de viudedad) in Spain
• Your family record book — Widow's and widower's pension (pensión de viudedad) in Spain

Each article lists the other documents it asks for, where you need them.