Template-type: ReDIF-Paper 1.0
Author-Name: Vandeninden, Frieda
Author-Email: Frieda.vandeninden@Maastrichtuniversity.nl
Author-Workplace-Name: UNU-MERIT, MGSoG, Maastricht University and Center of Research
	in Public Economics and Population Economics, Université de Liège
Title: A Simulation of Social Pensions in Europe 
Abstract: The aim of this paper is to evaluate the impact in terms of poverty and
	cost of the introduction of social (or non-contributory) pensions in
	Europe. We use data from the household survey EU-SILC and focus on 17
	countries. We simulate - in a static framework - the introduction of two
	social pension schemes: universal and means tested social pensions. We
	see that the old-age poverty would substantially decrease (average
	poverty rate goes from 19.7 to 2.5 per cent with the universal scheme)
	but not totally, even though the level of the universal pension is set
	up to the poverty line. The impact on poverty with the means tested
	social pension is quite similar (though always smaller) than the one
	with the universal pension, since most elderly have few other income
	sources than pensions. On the opposite, it costs less. In fact, the
	means test reduces substantially the number of entitled elderly while
	the universal pension leads to a 'leakage' to non-poor elderly. 
Classification-JEL: D310, D190, H55, I380
Keywords: old age, poverty, pension systems, social pensions, pensions
Series: UNU-MERIT Working Papers
Creation-Date: 2012
Number: 008
File-URL: http://www.merit.unu.edu/publications/wppdf/2012/wp2012-008.pdf
File-Format: application/pdf
File-Size: 275 Kb
Handle: RePEc:unm:unumer:2012008