The Government proposes that couples without children or married receive widowhood with a “stable coexistence” of at least five years

The Government has asked social agents to include that they can benefit from the widow’s pension those couples who, without being married or registered as a de facto couple “prove a stable and notable coexistence” of at least five years. The measure is included in the ‘Proposal for the improvement of the protective action of Social Security’, which the ministry headed by Elma Saiz sent to unions and employers on October 13, and to which it has had access Economic Information.

The decree document on which Inclusion, Social Security and Migration is working is only a draft, although it seeks to expand the beneficiaries of the widow’s pension after jurisprudence has taken important steps in this regard.

In this case, couples not registered as such will be able to access widowhood by providing the registration certificate, so that they can demonstrate “a stable and notable cohabitation immediately upon the death of the deceased and for an uninterrupted duration of no less than five years.”

In the event that the cohabitants are registered as a de facto couple or if, if they are not, they have children in common, the requirement to certify a “stable and notable” cohabitation is reduced from five to two years. The measure may be applied retroactively to those who, meeting the above requirements, They lost their partner before January 1, 2022.

The objective is that, once the royal decree is approved, they would have a deadline to submit their request until January 1, 2027. The draft to which this newspaper has had access also specifies that the recognized pension will have economic effects from the first day of the month following the requestexcept for those submitted until January 31, which will take effect from the first day of that month, provided that all the requirements set forth in said provision are met.

In September, Social Security allocated a total of 2,197.3 million euros to the payment of widow’s pensions, 16% of the 13,638 million that the contributory pension payroll amounted to in total (which also includes retirement benefits). According to system data, the average widow’s pension is 936.3 euros per month. This is the main one for 1.5 million people, of which 95.7% are women.

5.5 million couples in Spain

According to the National Institute of Statistics (INE), there were almost two million de facto couples in Spain in 2020, the last year for which there are official records. According to the latest Continuous Population Statistics (ECP), published by the organization in August (with data up to July 1), of the 19 million households registered nationwide, 29% are made up of two people, that is, just over 5.5 million. This is the highest figure since the beginning of the century and, although it is the largest group, official statistics also show a notable increase in single-person households, which now represent 28%.

The requirements to register as a de facto couple vary depending on the autonomous community, although in general continuous cohabitation and a certain duration are required. The Family Law of 2024 expanded a series of rights for these unions, such as the minimum supplement, and was already making progress in aspects such as the widow’s pension.

To be able to access this, de facto couples must meet the requirements established in the General Law of Social Securitywhich include the formal registration of the couple (in the regional or municipal registry, or through a public document) at least two years before the death, and uninterrupted cohabitation of at least five years (unless there are common children).