Curaçao’s SER submits AOV and AWW advice

Willemstad, September 14, 2026 — The Social and Economic Council (SER) of Curaçao submitted its advisory opinion on the bill to raise old-age pensions and survivor benefits on Monday, September 14, 2026, to Finance Minister Charles Cooper and Minister of Social Development, Labor and Welfare (SOAW) Charetti America-Francisca. The council adopted the opinion at an extraordinary plenary session on Friday, September 11, 2026.

A central measure is the increase in the full pension under the general old-age insurance program (AOV), from Cg 862 to Cg 1,000 a month for eligible recipients living in Curaçao. The higher amount has been paid since January 1, 2026. The bill would give that increase a statutory basis retroactive to that date.

The proposal would also raise benefits under the general widow and orphan insurance program (AWW), with January 1, 2027, as the intended start date. The program provides benefits to eligible widows, widowers and orphans. The proposed amounts vary by age and statutory category.

Future benefit adjustments are also part of the bill. It sets out new rules for periodic adjustments that take account of both consumer prices and economic growth. It also includes provisions for a specifically defined group of AOV beneficiaries living outside Curaçao. Those provisions are intended to give effect to a March 1, 2021, ruling by the Joint Court of Justice.

The bill comes as Curaçao’s population ages rapidly. According to the Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS), more than 40,000 residents were 65 or older on January 1, 2026, accounting for 25.9 percent of the population. Their number has nearly doubled in 15 years.

The stakes span generations. For older people and surviving family members, benefit levels directly affect what they can spend on daily needs. For workers, employers and the government, financing is also an issue. AOV operates on a pay-as-you-go-basis: current contribution revenue pays for current pensions. Changes in the number of beneficiaries are therefore closely tied to questions about employment, contribution revenue and government funding.

The SER received the finance minister’s request for advice on July 17, 2026.