France Weighs Targeted Freeze of Higher Pensions for 2027 Budget

Overview

• The Economy Ministry is studying a proposal, reported Sunday, to limit automatic inflation indexation for some pensions as part of an “année blanche à la carte” aimed at cutting roughly €12 billion from projected 2027 pension costs.
• Officials say the measure would be targeted and progressive, excluding small pensions and gradually reducing revalorisation up to a complete freeze above an as-yet-undefined threshold.
• About 17 million people receive pensions in France and the median pension is roughly €1,600 per month, which experts say makes precise targeting crucial to avoid hitting low-income retirees.
• Economists warn that the change would break with the repeated inflation-linked increases since 2022 and that unclear thresholds could create distributional and political risks ahead of the next budget.
• Bercy frames the move as fiscal reallocation toward areas such as education and research, but no decision has been taken and public debate and expert scrutiny are ongoing.