English Summary

The pension schemes of the liberal professions for members of professional associations

Part of the structured system of retirement pension schemes
The professional pension schemes of the liberal professions are part of the structured system of retirement pension schemes in the Federal Republic of Germany. The professional pension schemes for the liberal professions only exist for the members of special professional associations (Berufskammern) as there are physicians, pharmacists, architects, notaries, lawyers, tax consultants, veterinaries, chartered accountants, dentists and psychological psychotherapists.

Members paying contributions - by sex and profession (stand of the 31.12.2021)

Following the leading opinion there are three positive elements which come along with the concept of a liberal profession:

professional independance (not the equivalence of economical independance),
furnishing personal services,
furnishing of mainly intellectual services that are based on qualified education as well as one negative element of distinction:
no business.

Important for national economy and general public interest

For the existing pension schemes of the liberal professions there is something else to consider. There are a few liberal professions which to be removed is unthinkable because of their importance for the national economy in order to fulfill certain functions in the general public interest, e. g. healthcare or judicature. The state does recognize this...
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Financed by open capitalization

For the professional pension schemes of the liberal professions is characteristic that they are financed not by the method of "pay as you go" as it is used by the Social Insurance Pension Scheme. The pension Schemes of the liberal professions, however, are financed by a method that ist called open capitalization.
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