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Spain has treaties with other nations
For most foreign workers in Spain, not only EU citizens, there are treaty agreements with many nations to ensure that a worker who has laboured in several different countries does not wind up without enough years of paying Social Security to qualify for a pension in any country.
These agreements usually provide that the total number of years paid into the Social Security systems in the various countries be added together to enable the worker to qualify for a pension, which usually is paid proportionally by each country
So far we have discussed only the minimum payments and benefits of Spain’s Social Security system, but workers may pay more into the system and qualify for higher pensions at 65.
A self-employed worker can choose to set his salary base as high as €2,500 a month, meaning he would pay €900 a month into the system, in order to qualify for the maximum permitted pension of more than €1,500 a month after 35 years. A salaried worker earning that sum can also make maximum payments in order to get the maximum pension.
Those fortunate enough to be earning higher incomes find that no more Social Security payments can be made on the additional income.
The Spanish Social Security system also sets out a schedule of payments for major disability, such as losing your legs in an industrial accident, for orphans and for other areas, and generally functions much like the system in other European nations.
It has much the same worries about how the system will continue to work in the future, with the population having more and more retired people to be supported by a smaller percentage of active workers.
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