The pension reform brought in by the current Belgian Government will widen the gender pension gap among employees and self-employed individuals while reducing it among civil servants.
The findings are according to two studies from the Bureau of Economic Policy, presented to parliament on Monday.
The studies assessed both the financial and social impacts of the reform, implemented by the De Wever administration. Due to the late presentation of these assessments, the parliamentary vote was postponed at the request of the opposition.
Parliament’s Social Affairs Committee was originally scheduled to vote on the reform earlier this month, but the opposition successfully requested a delay after the study was postponed and presented only this week.
The benefit ratio
The first study highlights that the cumulative effects of the reform will be more detrimental to women than men in the cases of employees and self-employed individuals, echoing warnings from critics.
Female employees are projected to experience a -6.6% drop in the ratio between average pensions and average work income, known as the 'benefit ratio', by 2070.
Male employees, in comparison, will face a smaller decline of -5.8%. For self-employed individuals, the impact is -4.4% for women and -2.9% for men.
An action organized by a delegation of teachers on the occasion of the education strike day, in Brussels, on Monday 10 November 2025. Credit Belga
In contrast, the gender pension gap among civil servants is expected to narrow.
The study shows a reduction in the "benefit ratio" of -13.8% for male civil servants, compared to a lesser decline of -12.8% for female civil servants.
According to the Planning Office, this narrowing gap among civil servants is linked to reforms affecting preferential pension schemes, such as those for military personnel and train operators at the NMBS/SNCB, roles in which men are disproportionately represented.
As a result, male civil servants will be more affected by the measures than their female counterparts.
Inequality to rise
The second study highlighted that pension inequality is set to rise.
For example, the ratio between the ten percent highest and ten percent lowest pensions (the D10/D1 index) is expected to increase by 9.1% by the end of the legislative period. When accounting for household income and composition, inequality increases by 1.5% in terms of equivalent disposable income.
Lastly, poverty risk among retirees is forecast to grow. For new retirees, the poverty rate is expected to climb from 5.9 percent to 6.3 percent, while for all retirees, it will rise from 5.5 percent to 6.1 percent.
This increase is primarily linked to the government’s suspension of adjustments to minimum pensions designed to match general living standards.
