How will your pension scheme change on 1 January 2026? The changed pension scheme will apply for the months of January to June. We will then transfer to the new pension scheme in the new pension system on 1 July 2026. We will take you through the implications of this transition in detail in the coming months. For now, we have listed all the changes to the current pension scheme for you.

Changes before the transition:
Until 1 June 2026, employees and former employees with TOP capital and who are within 10 years before their state pension (AOW) date still have the option of having their TOP capital paid out in monthly instalments until their state pension date. As employee, you do not need to make any adjustments to your employment. You can request an estimate for this purpose by sending an e-mail to vragen@pftno.nl no later than 1 March 2026. If you decide not to exercise this option, your TOP capital will be carried over into the new pension system and can then no longer be used to receive a TOP benefit, and instead will be used to augment your retirement pension and, if applicable, your partner’s pension.

The 2026 terms of employment are known and therefore the 2026 pension scheme as well. After all, pension is one of the elements of the terms of employment. For example, since 2020, the agreed upon contribution is set annually by TNO’s social partners (Board of Management and Works Council). In addition, there are a number of changes to the pension scheme arising from statutory agreements, such as the maximum pension accrual. Below, we list these changes for 2026 and outline what they mean for your pension. Naturally, all of these changes have also been incorporated into the 2026 pension scheme.

Pension accrual and pension contribution in 2026
As in 2024 and 2025, pension accrual in 2026 will be at the level of the pension benefit target: 1.75%. The pension contribution in 2026 differs slightly from the 2025 contribution. In 2025 the contribution rate was 20.34% and in 2026 the contribution rate is 20.07%, because from 1 January 2026 the supplementary disability pension is no longer part of the pension scheme.

Employees who became sick and eventually qualified for a benefit under the Work and Income (Capacity for Work) Act (WIA) and who had a pensionable income that exceeded the maximum daily wage limit, until 31 December 2025 were entitled to a Supplementary Disability Pension from the pension fund of up to a maximum of 70% on the part of the pensionable income that exceeded the maximum daily wage limit, in addition to their WIA benefit from the UWV.

For employees who become sick on or after 1 January 2026, this scheme will no longer be administered by the pension fund. The employer has an alternative solution for this which is included in the terms of employment.

For those employees who became sick before 1 January 2026 and who would eventually be entitled to 

this benefit from the pension fund, the benefit will be transferred to a.s.r. insurance. Persons already receiving a Supplementary Disability Pension will be informed about the Collective Value Transfer of this part of their pension in early 2026. The ongoing supplementary disability benefits will also be transferred to a.s.r. insurance.

You do not pay the pension premium in full yourself; part of it is paid by the employer. The employer settles the other part of the pension premium through the employee’s salary. You can ask your own Works Council/HR representative how this settlement is effected. Your January pay slip will show the amount of your co-payment.

The indexation of accrued pensions and pension rights in payment as of 1 January 2026 will not be decided until the end of January 2026. After the board meeting on 28 January, the decision on indexation will be posted on our website.

Statutory adjustments
In addition to the pension contribution and associated accrual, there are a couple of annual, statutory adjustments to the pension scheme in 2026: the ’threshold amount’ and the maximum amount for pension accrual in 2026.

‘Threshold amount’
First, the ’threshold amount’, also known as franchise. This is the amount on which you do not accrue pension. This amount is roughly equal to the state pension (AOW) benefit you will receive from the government as of your state pension age. As of 1 January 2026, the amount of the franchise is € 18,722 (2025: € 18,124).

Maximum amount
Furthermore, there is a (statutory) maximum amount over which you can accrue old-age pension and partner’s pension. That amount was indexed annually, but the government decided last year not to index that amount in 2025 and 2026. So in 2026, that amount remains €137,800.

It is also worth noting that the Net Pension Scheme was terminated as at 31 December. The accrued net pension capital, net pensions in payment and non-contributory net pensions are transferred to a.s.r. insurance through a collective value transfer. The TOP Capital and Extra Pension Capital, insofar as they do not take effect in the coming months, will be included in the transition to the new pension system.

What do these changes mean in terms of your pension accrual?
Under the current pension system, you will only accrue retirement pension and partner’s pension for six months in 2026. This means that in 2026 you will accrue 1.75% over a maximum of € 137,800 – € 18,722 = € 119,078 for six months. This is equal to € 2,083.87 * 0.5 = € 1,041.93 in old age pension plus 70% = € 729.35 in partner’s pension. In case of death during employment before 1 July 2026, 70% of 1.75% pension accrual is also assumed for the remaining duration until the deceased’s state pension (AOW) date.

You will be informed in more detail about pension accrual after 30 June 2026 in the coming period.

View the changes
In the TNO Pension Fund portal, you will soon be able to see the adjusted amounts for 2026. You can then see what the 2026 changes mean for your final pension accrual. This is a very rough indication as we move to the new pension system on 1 July. From 1 July, there will also be a new website and a new pension portal.

Go to ‘My pension’ and log in with your DigiD. Based on that data, you can then decide for yourself whether you will eventually accrue sufficient pension. The changes will also be included on your annual pension statement, which will be sent out this spring.

Questions
If you have problems logging in or if you have substantive questions about your pension, contact our pension administrator AZL. During office hours, call 088 – 116 2401 or e-mail pf-tno@azl.eu.