Actuarilly Fair and Equal Pensions in the Republic of Croatia

Abstract

The average pension is actuarilly fair when the total amount of pensions received in a lifetime corresponds to the total pension contributions made during one’s working life. When a pension is actuarilly fair one may say that it has been earned and acquired through work. In order for a pension to be actuarilly fair, calculation must be done in accordance with the principle of actuarial equality, meaning that insured persons who paid their contribution in an equal total amount and lived to an average elderly age receive an equal total amount in the form of a pension regardless of the age at which they retired. A retirement system which upholds actuarial justice and equality encourages one to stay longer in the labour market, and as a rule it is financially sustainable. A retirement system in which an early pension is larger than an actuarilly equal pension encourages early retirement and creates added expenses. Up until the present time, calculations of an actuarilly fair and equal pension have not been published in the Republic of Croatia. Without access to the data in the Croatian Retirement Insurance Institute, which has not been published, it is not possible to do an accurate calculation thereof. Therefore we have done an approximate quasi–actuary calculation which is simpler and more understandable to a broader circle of people. The result demonstrates that the current average pension in the Republic of Croatia comes close to an actuarilly fair one, while actuary equality has been undermined. The 2010 proposal for a bill which was not accepted upholds the principle of actuary fairness.