Report changes to certified pension or basic pension contracts

If you, as a provider of a certified pension or basic pension contract, intend to make or communicate changes, you must notify them in advance.

As a provider of certified private pension and basic pension contracts, you must notify the certification office of the Federal Central Tax Office (BZSt) of changes in the following cases:

• Standard Change Notice (Contract Amendments)
  • If you, as a provider of a certified pension or basic pension agreement, wish to amend the contract terms, you must notify the certification agency in advance.
  • In the notice of amendment, you must list all amended text excerpts with references and submit the corresponding replacement pages with the marked changes.
• Notification of a provider change
  • If a certificate is transferred to a provider through a transfer of portfolio or by way of legal succession, for example through a merger (so-called provider change), you as the new (acquiring) provider must submit a notification of change.
• Notification of changes to provider data
  • If the legal form, company name, or registered office of you as a provider changes, you must notify this with a change notification.
  • You must submit the change notification for a certified contract in writing to the BZSt.

Note: For standard change notifications, no certification criteria under the Pension Contracts Certification Act (AltZertG) may be affected, as these contract adjustments can only be reviewed with a new, fee-based certification application.

You must submit the change notification for pension and basic pension contracts („Riester“ or „Rürup“) by mail to the Federal Central Tax Office (BZSt).

• Access the change notification form appropriate for your purpose on the BZSt website.
• Fill out the form electronically, print it out, and sign it.
• Send the form and all required documents by post to the BZSt branch office in Berlin.
• The BZSt is reviewing your notification of change.

After completion of the review, the certification body of the BZSt will notify you by mail of the result (approval or rejection) of the review of the notification of change regarding the affected pension or basic annuity contract.

There is no deadline.

There are no costs.

• Objection
• Action before the finance court