The ten voluntary private pension funds (Pillar 3) recorded in 2025 the best investment return in the almost 19-year history of the system, namely 19.6%, reaching net assets under management of 7.4 billion lei (1.45 billion euros), up 33% compared with the end of 2024, according to calculations by the Association for Privately Administered Pensions in Romania (APAPR).

According to the quoted source, a record number of 183,000 Romanians began saving additionally through voluntary pension funds in 2025, 37% more than in 2024, the year of the previous record. Thus, at the end of 2025 the total number of Romanians enrolled in Pillar 3 voluntary pensions reached one million for the first time, reflecting the high level of public confidence in private pension funds and in the national economy. During 2025, participants paid total contributions of around 940 million lei into their personal Pillar 3 accounts, 25% more than in 2024, also representing a record value for the system.

Over the entire operating period 2007-2025, voluntary pension funds generated an average annual return of 6.7%, compared with an average annual inflation rate of 4.9%, according to APAPR calculations. In monetary terms, Pillar 3 generated a gain for participants of 2.6 billion lei (515 million euros), net of all fees, in addition to the contributions received for management.

All Romanians who earn professional income may contribute to Pillar 3 voluntary pensions, including employees and those with independent activities assimilated to employees, as well as employers, who may provide additional Pillar 3 contributions on behalf of employees as part of the extra-salary benefits package.

Pillar 3 participants may withdraw the accumulated funds at any time after reaching the age of 60 and may continue to contribute after this age. In the event of the participant's death, the funds accumulated in Pillar 3 are transferred to the legal or testamentary heirs.

APAPR mentions that the new law on the payment of private pensions (Law 2/2026) will enter into force only on 5 January 2027, until then the transitional rules will continue to apply, allowing both lump-sum payments and payments in instalments over a maximum of five years.

Moreover, the ten voluntary pension funds made payments totalling around 272 million lei in 2025, up 83% compared with 2024, to 16,100 beneficiaries, up 39% compared with 2024. Total payments made by Pillar 3 over its entire operating period 2007-2025 reached 1.05 billion lei to around 107,000 beneficiaries.

At present, contributions to Pillar 3 are deductible up to a limit of 400 euros per year for individuals and employers, which means that the amounts paid by each participant are almost three times lower than those in Pillar 2.

Updating this ceiling would represent an important opportunity to stimulate additional savings for retirement age, APAPR believes. In the context of rising incomes and demographic challenges, increasing deductibility would make Pillar 3 more attractive, encouraging active participation by both the population and employers, the organisation maintains. AGERPRES (RO - writing by: Cristian Anghelache; EN - writing by: Adina Panaitescu)