Deputy of the Assembly of the Portuguese Republic André Ventura once again defended the creation of a maximum ceiling for pensions in Portugal, with the argument that the measure would serve to limit disparities in the value of pensions. The leader of Chega proposes a limit of 4,500 euros to stop what he classifies as “million-dollar reforms”.
In an interview with TVI/CNN Portugal, cited by , Ventura maintained that the idea is not new in Europe and pointed to Spain, Switzerland and France as examples of countries where there are maximum limits on pensions. The statement is generally true, but the comparison requires a lot of caution, because social security systems do not work in the same way.
Spain has a maximum limit on public pensions
In the Spanish case, there is a ceiling on contributory public pensions. According to information reported by Polígrafo, based on the Spanish Ministry of Inclusion, Social Security and Migrations, the limit in 2026 is 3,359.60 euros per month.
This ceiling applies to the sum of public pensions received by the beneficiary. In other words, even if a person is entitled to more than one public benefit, the combined value cannot exceed the fixed limit. In annual terms, the maximum value corresponds to 47,034.40 euros. Spain is, therefore, the most direct example among the countries cited by André Ventura.
In Switzerland, the system has several pillars
Switzerland also has limits, but the comparison is less linear. The first pillar, known as Old-Age and Survivors Insurance, has a maximum monthly value of 2,520 Swiss francs per person and 3,780 Swiss francs in the case of a couple. Converted to euros, the values mentioned in the Polígrafo article correspond to around 2,671 euros per person and 4,128 euros per couple.
However, the Swiss reform does not end with this first pillar. There is also mandatory occupational pension, the so-called second pillar, which contributes to the final income in retirement. Therefore, the aforementioned limit does not necessarily represent the total that a Swiss pensioner can receive.
France also has a limit, but only on the basic pension
In France, the general Social Security regime establishes that the basic State pension cannot exceed 50% of the current monthly Social Security ceiling. According to Polígrafo, for those retiring in 2026, this rule translates into a limit of 2,002.50 euros per month.
But here too there is an important difference. This is not a global retirement cap. Private sector workers also receive a mandatory supplementary pension through the Agirc-Arrco scheme. This supplementary regime works in points and is calculated independently. The amount obtained is added to the basic pension and can significantly increase the retiree’s total income.
Portugal does not have the same maximum ceiling
In Portugal, there is currently no fixed maximum value for the retirement pension under the same terms as the Spanish ceiling. Still, there are rules that condition the calculation. Polígrafo reminds us that, since 2007, the calculation of retirement started to consider not only the 10 best years of the last 15, but also the entire contributory career.
Additionally, the top 10 years of the last 15 were capped at 12 times the Social Support Index. However, when the entire contributory career exceeds this level, there is no absolute maximum ceiling for the pension granted.
André Ventura’s statement has a factual basis when he says that Spain, Switzerland and France have limits on pensions. However, these limits apply in different ways and in systems with different structures. In Spain, the ceiling is clearer and applies to all contributory public pensions. In Switzerland, the limit mentioned concerns the first pillar, but there is another mandatory pillar. In France, the ceiling applies to basic retirement, but does not prevent the receipt of mandatory supplementation.
Therefore, the existence of limits in other countries does not mean that everyone has a global ceiling equivalent to what Chega proposes for Portugal.
The debate in Portugal
Chega’s proposal comes in a broader debate about retirement age, Social Security sustainability and inequality in the value of pensions. The creation of a maximum ceiling would have a direct impact on higher pensions, but would also raise questions about long contribution careers, deductions made throughout working life and the general design of the pension system.
The conclusion is, therefore, balanced: yes, the countries mentioned by André Ventura have limits in parts of their social security systems. But the way these limits work varies greatly, so the comparison with Portugal cannot be made without taking into account the differences between Social Security models.
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