If you have worked or lived in Sweden, you receive a so-called general pension, which is based on all income you have been taxed on – regardless of whether it is salary or, for example, unemployment compensation.
In January 2024, the average public pension, which is paid out by the Pensions Authority, landed at SEK 16,200 a month.
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Then you can get a refund claim
But it also happens that pensioners receive too much money paid out by the Pensions Authority. You then become liable for repayment, regardless of whether you yourself or the authority in question caused money to be paid out incorrectly.
In January 2019, the rules on reporting to the Swedish Tax Agency were adjusted, which in turn meant that the Pensions Agency was tasked with reporting how much pension – or other form of compensation – was paid out and how much tax was deducted for each individual each month.
“The new rules mean that whoever receives a refund must pay back the entire incorrect payment, the gross amount, i.e. the incorrect payment plus the tax paid to the Tax Agency”, can be read at the authority.
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If, according to the Pensions Authority, you are obliged to repay money, you always have the opportunity to submit your views before a formal decision is made. Before then, they also work to prevent mistakes from happening at all.
– The pension authority works actively to make it easier for pensioners to do the right thing from the start and that everyone should receive the compensation they are entitled to. We work both on our own and also actively collaborate with other authorities to reduce the number of incorrect payments within the welfare system, says Caisa Staverydgroup manager at the Swedish Pensions Agency’s control unit, to Nyheter24.
There have been so many recovery cases this year
But what is the actual amount involved? News24 asked the Pensions Agency, which then stated that between January and May of this year, they handled 4,637 recovery cases and during this time period they recovered a total of SEK 114,555,371.
This means that, on average, in each case, SEK 24,704 was demanded back.
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