...A Comparison of Immigration Cohorts
Author: Jochen Baumann, Tatjana Mika
Ethnic Germans form a large group of immigrants to Germany. However, due to the fact that ethnic Germans have a direct entitlement to naturalization, they are often not considered in studies regarding the social security of persons with a migration background. As to the statutory pension scheme, phases of employment before the immigaration to Germanyare newly rated according to the law on foreign pensions (“Fremdrentengesetz”). Thus, ethnic Germans can aquire a pension entitlement on the basis of an employment exclusively performed in foreign countries. However, the primary idea of granting pensions at an amount that would have been reached after a corresponding career in Germany (with an according qualification and length of employment), has been attenuated by several reforms implemented since 1992. The authors investigate, how many German resettlers from Eastern and Southern Europe are among the insured and pensioners. Furthermore, they describe the impact of the amendments to the law on foreign pensions on the amount of pensions.
