III pillar pension (tax refund) calculator

Three examples with different income and contributions

The calculator works in two steps. First it finds the deductible amount, which is the smallest of three figures: your contribution, 15% of annual gross income, and 6,000 EUR. Then it multiplies that amount by the 2026 income tax rate of 22%. If the contribution exceeds a limit, a note under the result tells you which limit applied.

• Annual income 18,000 EUR, contribution 3,000 EUR: 15% of income is 2,700 EUR, so 2,700 EUR is deductible and the refund is 2,700 × 0.22 = 594 EUR. The last 300 EUR of the contribution earns no refund.
• Annual income 30,000 EUR, contribution 100 EUR a month or 1,200 EUR a year: the 15% limit is 4,500 EUR, so all 1,200 EUR is deductible and the refund is 264 EUR.
• Annual income 50,000 EUR, contribution 7,000 EUR: 15% of income is 7,500 EUR, but the 6,000 EUR ceiling is lower. 6,000 EUR is deductible and the refund is 1,320 EUR. 1,000 EUR gets no relief.

Which contribution gets the full relief

The largest contribution that earns the full refund is 15% of annual income, capped at 6,000 EUR. The two limits meet at an annual income of 40,000 EUR, because 40,000 × 0.15 = 6,000. Below that income the 15% rule sets the maximum; above it the 6,000 EUR ceiling does.

For example, with 20,000 EUR of annual income the limit is 3,000 EUR (250 EUR a month) and the maximum refund 660 EUR. With 30,000 EUR the limit is 4,500 EUR (375 EUR a month) and the refund up to 990 EUR. From 40,000 EUR the limit is 6,000 EUR (500 EUR a month) and the refund up to 1,320 EUR.

For annual income, enter gross income subject to social tax, not take-home pay. If you enter a net figure by mistake, the calculator will show a 15% limit that is too low and may understate the refund.

The refund cannot exceed the income tax you paid

The calculator works out the refund from the deductible amount, but it does not know how much income tax was actually withheld from you during the year. The refund cannot be larger than that. For most employees this ceiling never bites, but on a low income it can.

Example: a gross salary of 800 EUR a month, or 9,600 EUR a year, a 2% II pillar contribution, and the 700 EUR monthly basic exemption applied through payroll. Income tax withheld is 15.66 EUR a month, 187.92 EUR a year. If this person pays 1,000 EUR into the III pillar, it fits within the 15% limit (1,440 EUR) and the calculator shows a refund of 220 EUR. In reality no more than 187.92 EUR comes back.

The same ceiling applies to all deductions combined, for example if you also claim training costs or donations. For a closer estimate that accounts for withheld tax and any unused basic exemption, use the income tax refund calculator.

How to interpret the result

It makes sense to see the refund as a discount on the contribution rather than a return: it arrives once and does not depend on how the III pillar fund performs afterwards.

• The deductible amount is the part of the contribution that reduces your taxable income. It is not the sum you get back.
• The income tax refund is the money returned through your tax return. Everything runs by calendar year: contributions made in 2026 are declared at the start of 2027. The return can be filed from February to April, and the Tax and Customs Board (EMTA) pre-fills most of the data.
• When the whole contribution is deductible, 22% of it comes back. A 1,000 EUR contribution therefore costs you 780 EUR after the refund.

What the calculator leaves out

The calculator covers only the income tax relief in the year of the contribution. Fund returns, fund fees, and how the money will later be paid out and taxed are outside the calculation. Nor does it know whether you have made other deductions during the year that already use up part of the refund ceiling.

If your income changes during the year, for example you switch jobs or take on a second employer, enter the annual total of all income subject to social tax. Until the year is over the result is an estimate, because the 15% limit depends on your final annual income.