Retiring in Slovenia: Residence, Pension Taxation, the S1 Form and Cost of Living

Citizens of the European Union enter Slovenia with a valid identity card or passport and stay three months without registration (gov.si). Beyond that, the residence registration certificate is requested from the administrative unit of the place of residence, with adequate health insurance and sufficient means of subsistence. Your Europe sums up the same conditions for a retiree: full health insurance and an income, from a pension or another source, that lets you live without financial assistance.

• Document issued: the certificate is valid for the planned length of stay, with a maximum of five years, and is renewed on the same terms (gov.si).
• Amount of resources: the official pages consulted set no figure; the administrative unit assesses each file, and a pension or account statement eases processing.
• Permanent residence: after five years of continuous legal residence, a permanent residence certificate of unlimited duration can be issued; absences of less than six months a year do not break continuity (gov.si, europa.eu). An absence of more than two consecutive years can cause this right to be lost (europa.eu).
• Fine: a stay of more than 90 days without the certificate exposes you to a fine of €500 to €1,200 (France Diplomatie).

The page on living in Slovenia details the documents, the report to the police when staying with relatives and registration with the consular register.

The convention between France and Slovenia, signed in Ljubljana on 7 April 2004 and in force since 1 March 2007 (BOFiP), allocates the right to tax each category of income. It was amended by the multilateral BEPS convention signed on 7 June 2017, whose consolidated version is published on impots.gouv.fr.

• Private pensions and social security pensions (Article 17): subject to public pensions, pensions and similar remuneration paid to a resident of a State in respect of past employment are taxable only in that State. A retiree resident in Slovenia is therefore taxable in Slovenia on their private pensions; the French administration indicates that, where the convention contains no specific clause on social security pensions, the right to tax in principle goes to the State of residence (BOFiP). The return to be filed should be confirmed with the French and Slovenian tax administrations.
• Public pensions (Article 18, paragraph 2): pensions paid by a State or authority for services rendered to that State are taxable only in that State, unless the beneficiary is a resident and national of the other State without holding the nationality of the first. A former French civil servant resident in Slovenia therefore remains taxed in France.
• Slovenian scale: income tax is progressive, from 16% to 50% according to the official business portal (SPOT); thresholds and allowances change every year and can be read on the Slovenian tax administration’s website.
• French levies: with tax residence outside France, the health contribution of 3.2% (basic pension) and 4.2% (supplementary pension) applies to general scheme pensions, and 7.1% to those of the self-employed; with tax residence in France, the CSG, CRDS and CASA apply (CLEISS).

The guide on receiving your pension abroad details the payment of pensions outside France. Individual advice lets you check the returns to be filed in each country.

A retiree who receives only a French pension, lives in Slovenia permanently or for more than six months a year and does not work there requests the S1 from their pension fund (the CNAV, the national old-age insurance fund, for the general scheme; the public finance directorate for foreign residents for State pensioners); it is requested preferably before leaving and registration is made with the Slovenian insurer (CLEISS). No contribution to the local scheme is withheld, as the French pension already bears levies. Each family member concerned has their own S1.

• Care in France: the holder stays covered in France and can be treated there for any reason, under French rules (CLEISS).
• Flat-rate contribution: the ZZZS classes pensioners of a foreign scheme among insured people; the contribution, around €40 per month, is set each year by the Minister of Health, and its application to an S1 holder should be confirmed with the ZZZS before settling in (CLEISS, ZZZS).
• Care pathway: family doctor of free choice, compulsory referral through them for specialists; see the Slovenian healthcare system and the page on healthcare reimbursement.

To complement this with first-euro cover or wider access, Expavy helps you compare the options; see also the page on retirement insurance abroad.

The average gross wage is close to €2,700 and the minimum wage around €1,500 gross per month (Statistical Office of Slovenia, Eurostat): these figures show the local standard of living. CLEISS indicates that the Slovenian minimum pension is around €260 per month and the guaranteed pension around €570, which shows the level of local retirees’ incomes, without setting a budget for a French retiree.

• Housing: rents and prices vary between Ljubljana, the coast and the east of the country; the Statistical Office of Slovenia publishes the official statistics. The lease serves as proof of address for residence registration.
• Health: a patient share of 10% to 90% depending on the service, dental care covered at 80% for adults and dentures covered at 10% (CLEISS) justify setting aside a health budget; the guide on budgeting for health abroad helps put a figure on it.
• Currency: the euro, with no exchange-rate risk for a pension paid in euros.

Ljubljana, with about 293,000 inhabitants in its locality (Statistical Office of Slovenia), concentrates health services, the French embassy and the French school. The small towns around the capital and the Koper coast appeal for their quality of life, while Maribor offers a large university and hospital city in the east of the country.

The choice depends on proximity to a hospital centre, the climate and altitude: France Diplomatie flags floods and landslides during autumn and winter rains, seismic activity in three zones of the country and ticks carrying encephalitis and Lyme disease in wooded areas. A trial stay of a full season, winter included, before committing to a long lease limits unpleasant surprises; learning Slovenian eases paperwork and social life.

Periods completed in France and Slovenia are added together to open entitlement: the guide on quarters worked abroad explains the aggregation. According to CLEISS, the statutory retirement age is 65 with a minimum insurance period of 15 years; the pension is calculated on the average monthly insured income of the best 24 consecutive years.

• Early retirement: possible from age 60 after 40 years of insurance, with a reduction of 0.3% per month of anticipation.
• Deferral: a deferral of at least one year increases the pension by 1.5% per six-month period, up to three years.
• Annual bonus: a flat-rate bonus is generally paid with the June pension; its amount depends on the level of the pension (CLEISS).

The application is made to the competent Slovenian institute, which specifies the amounts in force.

• Request the S1 from your pension fund, for yourself and for each family member concerned, and notify the French funds of the change of address and payment account.
• Apply for the registration certificate before the end of the third month, with your passport, proof of health insurance and proof of resources.
• Have the S1 registered with the Slovenian insurer, then choose a contracted family doctor.
• Register on the register of French nationals living abroad with the embassy in Ljubljana.
• Declare the social security pension under the tax convention, after checking which State taxes it.

In the event of a return to France, the insured person contacts the last health insurance fund they came under: the page on returning to France details the steps.