Pension · pension gap 2026
Pension-gap calculator 2026 — which periods accrue pension?
Earnings-related pension accrues not only from work but from many unpaid periods too — though not all of them. Earnings-related unemployment allowance, parental allowance, sickness and rehabilitation allowance, care of a child under 3 at home and completed-degree study all accrue pension.
Kela’s flat-rate basic security — the general benefit yleistuki (formerly peruspäiväraha and työmarkkinatuki) — study without a degree and work outside the EU, however, are pension gaps that build no earnings-related pension. Enter the months for each life stage — the tool shows which accrue pension, how large your gap is and how much pension it costs you.
Enter the months for each life stage
An estimate of your typical gross salary. It is used as the accrual basis for earnings-related benefits and as the comparison baseline for the gap.
Accrues pension
Earnings-related unemployment allowance
75% of the salary basis
Parental allowance (pregnancy/parental)
121% of the salary basis
Sickness or rehabilitation allowance
65% of the salary basis
Care of a child under 3 at home (home-care allowance)
Flat basis €896.42/mo (state-funded)
Study leading to a completed degree
Flat basis €896.42/mo (state-funded)
Does not accrue (pension gap)
Kela yleistuki (formerly peruspäiväraha/työmarkkinatuki)
Study without a degree
Work outside the EU (non-agreement country)
At home without benefit / other break
Your estimated pension gap
€0.00/ mo
This is how much monthly pension you miss out on from periods that do not accrue earnings-related pension — compared with having worked at the reference salary.
Accruing months
0 mo
Pension gap (mo)
0 mo
Accrued from unpaid periods: €0.00 / mo
An indicative estimate under 2026 rules. Accrual is 1.5% per year. The real accrual basis for earnings-related benefits may differ from the reference salary (the basis is the benefit's own earnings). Work in EU/agreement countries may accrue pension in that country. Check your own situation on your pension record (Työeläke.fi).
Which life stages accrue earnings-related pension?
From 2026, earnings-related pension accrues for everyone at 1.5% per year. Besides work, many unpaid periods accrue pension: earnings-related unemployment allowance (75% of the basis), parental allowance (121%), sickness and rehabilitation allowance (65%), plus care of a child under 3 at home and completed-degree study (a flat €896.42/mo basis, study for at most 5 years). A pension gap arises from periods that accrue nothing: Kela's yleistuki (only the earnings-related allowance accrues!), study without a degree, work outside the EU and staying home without a benefit. The tool classifies your periods and estimates how much pension the gaps cost you.
Which periods accrue pension and which do not
All credited periods accrue pension at 1.5% per year. For earnings-related benefits the accrual is a share of the benefit’s earnings basis: parental allowance 121%, earnings-related unemployment allowance 75%, and sickness and rehabilitation allowance 65%. Care of a child under 3 at home and completed-degree study accrue from a flat, state-funded basis (VEKL), which is €896.42/month in 2026. Study accrues pension for at most five years.
Pension gaps — periods that build no earnings-related pension at all — are Kela’s flat-rate basic security, i.e. yleistuki (formerly peruspäiväraha and työmarkkinatuki), study that does not lead to a degree, work outside the EU/EEA and social-security-agreement countries, and breaks with no benefit. The key distinction is that only the earnings-related unemployment allowance accrues pension — Kela’s basic security does not.
A single gap will not wreck your pension, but long periods show. The calculator estimates how much pension goes unaccrued, so you can fill the gap if you wish — for example with voluntary saving or by working longer.
Frequently asked questions
Does unemployment accrue pension?
Only partly. The earnings-related unemployment allowance (ansiopäiväraha) accrues pension (75% of the earnings basis), but Kela’s basic security — yleistuki (formerly peruspäiväraha and työmarkkinatuki) — accrues no earnings-related pension at all.
Does study accrue pension?
Completed-degree study accrues from the flat VEKL basis (€896.42/month in 2026), for at most five years. Study without a degree accrues no pension.
Does caring for a child accrue pension?
Yes. Parental allowance accrues from the earnings basis (121%) and care of a child under 3 at home from the flat VEKL basis (€896.42/month in 2026).
Which periods leave a pension gap?
Kela’s basic security — yleistuki (formerly peruspäiväraha and työmarkkinatuki) — study without a degree, work outside the EU and breaks with no benefit. These accrue no earnings-related pension at all.
Can I fill a pension gap?
You cannot buy back lost accrual afterwards, but you can reduce a gap’s impact by working longer (including the deferral increment) or saving for retirement yourself. The calculator helps you gauge the size of the gap.