Widow's or widower's pension in case of divorce

Is it possible to collect a widow's or widower's pension after divorce? This is undoubtedly an important question for all those who, after having been married to another person for several years, see the death of their former spouse. We would therefore like to answer this question in detail.

Collecting the widow's or widower's pension for divorced persons

The legislation establishes that, in general, the surviving spouse is entitled to a widow's/widower's pension for life, regardless of whether he/she was married to, divorced from or legally separated from the deceased. Therefore, the answer to the question with which we started this article is yes. However, a number of requirements must be met.

Divorce and widow's/widower's pension: requirements

First of all, we must talk about the requirements that the deceased spouse or ex-spouse must meet in order to be entitled to receive a widow's or widower's pension from their partner or ex-partner. Let's take a look at them:

• If he/she was registered or in a situation assimilated to registration with the Social Security at the time of death. It must be shown that he/she has paid contributions for 500 days within the 5 years prior to the time of death.
• If he was not registered or in a situation assimilated to registration with the Social Security at the time of his death. He must have paid contributions for a minimum period of 15 years.
• Exceptions. If the person dies as a result of an occupational disease or an accident (occupational or otherwise), he does not have to meet the above requirements.

However, what are the specific requirements that divorced persons must meet in order to receive a widow's or widower's pension after the death of their former spouse? Specifically, these are the following three:

• Not having subsequently married another person.
• Not to have entered into a civil partnership with another person.
• Receiving a compensatory pension which, of course, ceases at the time of the death of the former spouse.

Requirements for receiving the widow's/widower's pension for legally separated spouses

It is possible that the spouses, at the time of the death of the deceased, were legally separated. This does not exempt the surviving spouse from receiving the widow's/widower's pension if he/she was entitled to a compensatory pension. This requirement is only waived if they go to the registry office to certify that a reconciliation has taken place.

Exceptions to the condition of being entitled to a maintenance allowance

Is it possible to receive a widow's/widower's pension in the event of separation without a compensatory pension? What about divorce? The law states that yes, but only in exceptional cases. Specifically, we are talking about women who can prove that they are victims of gender-based violence at the time of divorce or legal separation.
On the other hand, if the divorce took place before 1 January 2008 and the death of the person who gave rise to the right took place within 10 years of that date (until 31 December 2017), it is also possible to waive this requirement if:

• The marriage lasted more than 10 years.
• There are joint children of the marriage.
• The surviving spouse is over 50 years of age at the date of death.

Likewise, those over 65 years of age who are not recipients of a compensatory pension and do not prove their entitlement to any other type of public pension, do not meet the above requirements and have been divorced after 15 years or more of marriage, will also be entitled to receive the widow's or widower's pension.

What happens if the deceased remarries after divorce?

The law states that only one person can be entitled to a widow's or widower's pension. However, if there is an ex-spouse who is entitled to it and a spouse who is also entitled to it, the amount must be divided between the two.
But how is this division to be made? Basically, it is done by taking into account the length of time lived with the deceased. In any case, it is guaranteed that the surviving spouse (the one who was married to the deceased at the time of death) will receive at least 40% of the total.

In short, we hope we have made it clear that if you get divorced you are entitled to a widow's/widower's pension provided that you previously received a compensatory pension. Or, failing that, if you were a victim of domestic violence or if you meet the other requirements explained above. The same applies if you were legally separated at the time of your ex-spouse's death.