Rejoining the second pillar

Rejoining the second pillar after a 5-year break

From 2026, people who have withdrawn their second pillar savings or stopped making contributions can rejoin the second pillar after a 5-year break. Instead of the previous 10-year waiting period, it is now possible to resume saving for retirement much sooner.

Before rejoining, please note that this is a long-term decision: once you rejoin, you will continue contributing to the second pillar until retirement. You can start receiving a second pillar pension up to 5 years before reaching the state pension age or if you have been assessed as having no work ability.

When can I rejoin the second pillar?

You become eligible to rejoin once at least 5 years have passed since the application period in which you submitted your application to withdraw your savings or stop making contributions.

If you do not remember when your obligation to make second pillar contributions ended, you can check this in the Pensionikeskus self-service portal:

General data→ Data and preferences → Payment duties

How can I rejoin the second pillar?

1. Submit an application to make contributions

To resume contributions, you need to submit an application
“Making contribution”.

You can find the application in the Pensionikeskus self-service portal:

Applications → II pillar applications

If you change your mind, you can cancel the submitted application during the same application period. For example, if you submit the application in November 2026, you can cancel it until the end of November.

2. Choose a new pension fund if necessary

f you want to continue saving in a different pension fund than before, you also need to submit a “Selection application (II pillar)” and select the pension fund in which you want to continue saving.

When will contributions resume?

The obligation to make second pillar contributions starts three times a year:

1 January
1 May
1 September

You do not have to submit the application to make contributions immediately after the 5-year waiting period has ended. You can also submit it later. In that case, your contributions will resume in January, May or September, depending on when you submit the application.

Rejoining periods

second pillar contribution obligation ended	first application period	new second pillar contribution start
01.09.2021	01.11–30.11.2026	01.05.2027
01.01.2022	01.11–30.11.2026	01.05.2027
01.05.2022	01.11–30.11.2026	01.05.2027
01.09.2022	01.12.2026–31.03.2027	01.09.2027
01.01.2023	01.04–31.07.2027	01.01.2028
01.05.2023	01.08–30.11.2027	01.05.2028
01.09.2023	01.12.2027–31.03.2028	01.09.2028
The periods continue according to the same schedule

If you want to resume saving for retirement at the earliest opportunity, we recommend submitting the application to make contributions as soon as you become eligible to do so.

Good to know

To rejoin the second pillar, the 5-year waiting period must have ended.
To resume contributions, you need to submit an application to make contributions.
If you want to change your pension fund, you also need to submit a choice application.
The date on which your contributions actually resume depends on when you submit the application.
You can cancel a submitted application during the same application period.

My pension account

Ministry of Finance website

Frequently asked questions

Example:

If your second pillar contribution obligation ended on 01.09.2021, 01.01.2022 or 01.05.2022, you can submit the application to make contributions starting from 01.11.2026.

If you submit the application in November 2026, your first contributions will start in May 2027.

The second pillar contribution obligation starts three times a year:
on January 1
on May 1
on September 1