The pension scheme in Malta is relatively new due to the nature of having gained independence from the United Kingdom on 21st September, 1964 and became a republic on 13th December, 1974. It also has the smallest economy in the eurozone [1] which explains why Malta very recently enacted the Retirement Pensions Act of 2015. Since Malta has been a member of the European Union since May 1, 2004, [2] they are to uphold the values of The European Pillar of Social Rights. Though, ultimately pension policy and the regulation of it is held at the national level. There are different types of retirement schemes citizens of Malta qualify for. The first being an occupational retirement scheme in that this plan is established either for or by an employer for associated employees. The second is a personal retirement scheme in which the individual has contributed to the plan rather than an employer.
The majority of the population is employed in the manufacturing and service sector with a unionized public sector. [3] This results in the occupational retirement scheme being the most popular. Currently only 20.51% of Malta's current population as of 2018 is 65 years of age or old qualifying for pension schemes. [4] This has led to Malta dedicating only 7.6% relative of its GDP to expenditure on pensions as of 2015. [5]
The World Factbook, also known as the CIA World Factbook, is a reference resource produced by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) with almanac-style information about the countries of the world. The official print version is available from the Government Publishing Office. The Factbook is available in the form of a website that is partially updated every week. It is also available for download for use off-line. It provides a two- to three-page summary of the demographics, geography, communications, government, economy, and military of each of 267 international entities including U.S.-recognized countries, dependencies, and other areas in the world.
The economy of Malta is a highly industrialised, service-based economy. It is classified as an advanced economy by the International Monetary Fund and is considered a high-income country by the World Bank and an innovation-driven economy by the World Economic Forum. It is a member of the European Union and of the eurozone, having formally adopted the euro on 1 January 2008.
A pension is a fund into which a sum of money is added during an employee's employment years and from which payments are drawn to support the person's retirement from work in the form of periodic payments. A pension may be a "defined benefit plan", where a fixed sum is paid regularly to a person, or a "defined contribution plan", under which a fixed sum is invested that then becomes available at retirement age. Pensions should not be confused with severance pay; the former is usually paid in regular amounts for life after retirement, while the latter is typically paid as a fixed amount after involuntary termination of employment before retirement.
A pension fund, also known as a superannuation fund in some countries, is any plan, fund, or scheme which provides retirement income.
The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) is a department of His Majesty's Government responsible for welfare, pensions and child maintenance policy. As the UK's biggest public service department it administers the State Pension and a range of working age, disability and ill health benefits to around 20 million claimants and customers. It is the second largest governmental department in terms of employees, and the largest in terms of expenditure (£187bn).
The U.S. Railroad Retirement Board (RRB) is an independent agency in the executive branch of the United States government created in 1935 to administer a social insurance program providing retirement benefits to the country's railroad workers.
The economy of the European Union is the joint economy of the member states of the European Union (EU). It is the third largest economy in the world in nominal terms, after the United States and China, and the third one in purchasing power parity (PPP) terms, after China and the United States. The European Union's GDP estimated to be around $16.6 trillion (nominal) in 2022 representing around one sixth of the global economy.
Social partners are groups that cooperate in working relationships to achieve a mutually agreed-upon goal, typically for the benefit of all involved groups. Examples of social partners include employers, employees, trade unions, and governments.
Pensions in the United Kingdom, whereby United Kingdom tax payers have some of their wages deducted to save for retirement, can be categorised into three major divisions - state, occupational and personal pensions.
The Pensions Act 2004 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom to improve the running of pension schemes.
The following are the international rankings of Taiwan.
The economy of Sweden is a highly developed export-oriented economy, aided by timber, hydropower, and iron ore. These constitute the resource base of an economy oriented toward foreign trade. The main industries include motor vehicles, telecommunications, pharmaceuticals, industrial machines, precision equipment, chemical goods, home goods and appliances, forestry, iron, and steel. Traditionally, Sweden relied on a modern agricultural economy that employed over half the domestic workforce. Today Sweden further develops engineering, mine, steel, and pulp industries, which are competitive internationally, as evidenced by companies like Ericsson, ASEA/ABB, SKF, Alfa Laval, AGA, and Dyno Nobel.
Pensions in Norway fall into three major divisions; State Pensions, Occupational Pensions and Individual or personal Pensions.
Pensions in Germany are based on a “three pillar system”.
Poverty in Cyprus is not well documented, yet is still considered a major problem by the Cypriot government. Due to strong kinship bonds among extended families, poverty in Cyprus primarily affects those outside kinship networks, such as immigrants, divorcees and singles from small families. One study found a strong correlation between increased poverty and small family size. Poverty is also more likely to affect the elderly than the young, as a result of income to pensions raising the dependency levels.
Adherents of Islam constitute the world's second largest religious group. According to an estimation in 2022, Islam has 1.98 billion adherents, making up about 24.9% of the world population. Studies in the 21st century suggest that, in terms of percentage and worldwide spread, Islam is the fastest-growing major religion in the world, mostly because Muslims have more children than other major religious groups. While according to Pew 2010 estimates for 2020, Muslims number 1.90 Billion in the world. Most Muslims are either of two denominations: Sunni or Shia. Islam is the majority religion in several subregions: Central Asia, West Asia, North Africa, the Sahel, and the Middle East. The diverse Asia-Pacific region contains the highest number of Muslims in the world, easily surpassing the combined Middle East and North Africa.
Compared to other liberal democracies, Ireland's pension policies have average coverage, which includes 78 percent of the workforce, and it offers different types of pensions for employees to choose from. The Irish pension system is designed as a pay-as-you-go program and is based on both public and private pension programs.
Luxembourg has an extensive welfare system. It comprises a social security, health, and pension funds. The labour market is highly regulated, and Luxembourg is a corporatist welfare state. Enrollment is mandatory in one of the welfare schemes for any employed person. Luxembourg's social security system is the Centre Commun de la Securite Sociale (CCSS). Both employees and employers make contributions to the fund at a rate of 25% of total salary, which cannot eclipse more than five times the minimum wage. Social spending accounts for 21.8% of GDP.
An occupational pension fund, also referred to as an employer funded or employer administered scheme, is a pension offered by an employer to an employee's retirement scheme. Within the European Union (EU), these pension funds can vary throughout certain Member States due to differences in retirement ages in Europe, salaries and length of careers, labour and tax laws, and phases of reform.