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Apply for a Kontenklärung

Deutsche Rentenversicherung · Clarify your insurance account

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With account clarification (Kontenklärung), the Deutsche Rentenversicherung checks your entire insurance history for completeness and accuracy and adds any missing periods. It is the single most effective measure for securing your later pension – and it is free of charge.

Under § 149 SGB VI, the pension insurance institution must work towards ensuring that the insurance account is complete and clarified. Conversely, you are obliged to cooperate: to check your insurance history, provide information and submit documents. The application is made using form V0100 or online via the eServices.

Timing is crucial. Typical gaps – school, studies, training, child-raising, care, unemployment, employment abroad – can only be proven for as long as the documents and the issuing bodies still exist. Anyone who waits until the pension application is looking for evidence of periods that go back decades. Every unrecognised period means permanently less pension.

Last updated26 August 2026
Legal basis§ 149 SGB VI
VerificationChecked against gesetze-im-internet.de and the Deutsche Rentenversicherung
Written and reviewed byAndrés Sánchez Botta
Independent information page: we are not the Deutsche Rentenversicherung, not an authority and not a paid advice service — we do not submit applications on your behalf. All information comes from official sources and is explained here in simple terms; the competent body is always authoritative. Which evidence is required in an individual case is decided by the competent pension insurance institution. All information without guarantee. We are neither lawyers nor tax consultants: we document administrative procedures and check the information against the official source — this is information, not legal or tax advice.
CostsFree of chargeApplication, review and advice
Processing timeApprox. 3–6 monthsLonger for periods abroad
FormV0100Explanatory notes in V0110
Six-year rule6 yearsOlder data is determined
Required documents

What you need

Insurance history

The basis of the whole review. You receive it with your pension information (Renteninformation), via the eServices, or on request. Go through it line by line and mark every period that is missing or incorrectly recorded – that is the actual work of account clarification.

School, training and university certificates

Reports, enrolment certificates, deregistration certificates and training contracts. School and higher-education periods from your 17th birthday can be taken into account as crediting periods. Schools and universities destroy documents after retention periods expire – the later you ask, the greater the risk.

Employment contracts and references

For periods of employment missing from your account. Old pay statements, social insurance records, or a former social insurance card also help. If the employer no longer exists, references, witness statements or documents from the health insurance fund (Krankenkasse) may be considered.

Children’s birth certificates (Geburtsurkunde)

For child-raising periods and consideration periods. These periods are missing particularly often, because there was frequently no contact with the pension insurance during the raising years. Up to three years are at stake per child – corresponding to around three earnings points.

Evidence of care, illness and unemployment

Notices from the long-term care insurance fund (Pflegekasse) about contribution payments, certificates relating to sickness benefit, as well as notices from the Agentur für Arbeit. These periods are either compulsory contribution periods or crediting periods and affect qualifying periods and the amount of pension.

Documents on periods abroad

Employment contracts, foreign insurance numbers and certificates from foreign institutions. Within the EU and with agreement states, periods are aggregated, but clarification takes considerably longer – start on this particularly early.

Step by step

How to proceed

  1. 1

    Request and go through the insurance history

    Obtain the current insurance history via the eServices or in writing. Check it in full, from your first employment to today, leaving no period out. Pay particular attention to periods with no entry: school, studies, training, child-raising, care, military or alternative civilian service, unemployment and stays abroad. Note down for every gap what you were doing at the time.

  2. 2

    Obtain the evidence

    Request missing certificates from schools, universities, former employers, health insurance funds and the Agentur für Arbeit. This is the most time-consuming step, and the reason not to put off account clarification: the further back the periods lie, the more often documents have been destroyed and contacts can no longer be reached.

  3. 3

    Submit application V0100

    Submit the "application for account clarification" (form V0100, explanatory notes in V0110) together with the evidence – online via the eServices or on paper. The pension insurance recommends the online form: it only needs your pension insurance number to start, allows documents to be uploaded, can be saved and continued later, and confirms receipt immediately.

  4. 4

    Answer follow-up queries

    The pension insurance will get in touch if any information is unclear or evidence is missing. Respond promptly and completely. If you cannot prove a period, say so openly – for some periods, credible statements or witness declarations are sufficient if documents demonstrably no longer exist.

  5. 5

    Check the notice of determination

    At the end, you receive a notice in which the clarified periods are determined with binding effect. Compare it with your own records. You can lodge an objection against errors within one month of notification – after that, the determination becomes final.

  6. 6

    Keep your account up to date

    Repeat the review every few years and after every major life event – the birth of a child, caring for relatives, a longer period of unemployment, a stay abroad. This keeps the account complete, and the later pension application becomes a mere formality.

Fee information

Costs and payment

Account clarification is free of chargeCosts only arise for individual pieces of evidence
Application V0100Free of charge
Checked by the DRVFree of charge
AdviceFree of charge
Notice of determinationFree of charge
Objection (Widerspruch)Free of charge
Certificates from the registry officeApprox. €10–15

Account clarification itself costs nothing – neither the application nor the review, the notice or an objection. Fees can only arise for individual pieces of evidence, for example for birth certificates from the registry office (usually around €10 to €15 per copy under the local fee by-law) or for certified copies. This is offset by a considerable economic benefit: every added year of child-raising corresponds to around one earnings point and thus a good €42 of monthly gross pension – for life. For the basic pension too, where the 33-year threshold is often decided by just a few months, a single added period can tip the balance.

Good to know

Important notes

The six-year rule. Under § 149 Abs. 5 SGB VI, data in the insurance history that has not yet been determined and lies more than six calendar years in the past is determined with binding effect by a notice of determination – after an account clarification, or if you raise no objection for six calendar months. Anyone who files away the transmitted insurance history without comment thereby also makes any faulty entries binding.

The earlier, the better. There is no age limit for account clarification. It makes sense as soon as gaps are foreseeable – but at the latest well before your 55th birthday, from which point the Rentenauskunft (expanded pension information) replaces the Renteninformation.

Online is faster. The pension insurance explicitly recommends the online form V0100: it only needs your pension insurance number to start, offers help functions, allows documents to be uploaded, can be saved for up to 30 days, and confirms receipt immediately.

Child-raising periods run via their own form. V0800 is provided for them, the "application for the determination of child-raising periods"; if the raising was joint, the assignment declaration V0820 is also needed. General account clarification runs via V0100.

Periods abroad need lead time. Periods in EU states and agreement states are taken into account, but coordination with foreign institutions often takes a year or longer. Anyone with periods abroad should start the clarification correspondingly earlier.

Even seemingly worthless periods count. Short casual jobs, internships with contribution payments, or a few months of care work can decide whether a qualifying period of 35 or 45 years is met – and thus access to an early or deduction-free old-age pension.

Missing documents do not automatically mean the end. If evidence has demonstrably been destroyed, other proof may be considered: references, old pay statements, documents from the health insurance fund, or witness statements. Explain the circumstances openly rather than simply leaving the period out.

The notice is binding. A notice of determination establishes the periods with legally binding effect. This later protects you from disputes – but equally rules out corrections if you have overlooked an error. So check it carefully within the one-month deadline.

Avoid these mistakes

Common mistakes

Putting off account clarification until the pension application. The most costly mistake. Looking for evidence of periods from the 1970s or 1980s at the time of the pension application often no longer succeeds – employers no longer exist, schools have destroyed their files. The missing periods permanently reduce the pension.

Filing away the transmitted insurance history unchecked. If you do not object within six calendar months, data that lies more than six calendar years in the past is determined with binding effect – even if it is wrong.

Taking child-raising periods for granted. They are not recorded automatically. If they are missing, up to three earnings points per child are missing, corresponding to around €125 of monthly pension.

Tackling periods abroad too late. Coordination with foreign institutions often takes over a year. Anyone who only starts shortly before retirement risks the pension start being calculated without these periods.

Missing the objection deadline against the notice of determination. One month from notification. After that, the determination becomes final and can only be corrected to a limited extent.

Clarifying only once and then forgetting about it. New entries – or indeed gaps – arise after the birth of a child, periods of care, or longer unemployment. Check your account again after every major life stage.

Frequently asked questions

Questions and answers

What is an account clarification?

With account clarification, the Deutsche Rentenversicherung checks your entire insurance history for completeness and accuracy and adds any missing periods. Under § 149 SGB VI, the pension insurance institution must work towards ensuring that the insurance account is complete and clarified; you, for your part, are obliged to cooperate and must provide information and submit documents. At the end stands a notice of determination that establishes the recognised periods with binding effect.

What does account clarification cost?

Nothing. Application, review, notice of determination, advice and any objection are free of charge at the Deutsche Rentenversicherung. Costs can only arise for individual pieces of evidence, for example for civil status documents at the registry office – usually around €10 to €15 per copy under the relevant local fee by-law.

Which form do I need?

For general account clarification, form V0100, "application for account clarification"; the corresponding explanatory notes can be found in V0110. For child-raising periods there is a dedicated form, V0800; if the period is to be assigned to the father in the case of joint raising, the assignment declaration V0820 is also needed. The pension insurance recommends submitting the application online via the eServices.

When should I do the account clarification?

As early as possible. There is no age limit. What matters is that periods can only be proven for as long as documents and the issuing bodies still exist. Anyone who waits until the pension application is looking for evidence of periods that go back decades. If you have periods abroad, allow an additional year or more of lead time.

What does the six-year rule mean?

Under § 149 Abs. 5 SGB VI, data in the insurance history that has not yet been determined and lies more than six calendar years in the past is determined with binding effect by a notice of determination – either after an account clarification, or if you do not object to the transmitted insurance history for six calendar months. Anyone who files away the history unchecked thereby also makes any faulty entries binding.

How long does account clarification take?

Usually around three to six months. It takes considerably longer if foreign institutions are involved or if documents still need to be obtained. The actual processing time at the pension insurance is usually shorter than the time you yourself need to gather the evidence.

What happens if I cannot prove a period?

Not every gap is lost. If documents have demonstrably been destroyed, substitute evidence may be considered – references, old pay statements, documents from the health insurance fund, a former social insurance card, or statements from witnesses. Explain the circumstances openly; the pension insurance then checks whether the period has been made credible.

Is the effort worth it?

As a rule, clearly so. Every added year of child-raising corresponds to around one earnings point and thus a good €42 of monthly gross pension – for life. For qualifying periods too, a single period can be decisive: whether you reach 35 years for an early old-age pension or 45 years for a deduction-free one sometimes hinges on a few months. The same applies to the basic pension supplement.

Related official procedures

Insurance history
Basis of the clarification
Free of charge
Child-raising periods
Most common gap
Free of charge
Rentenauskunft
Every three years from 55
Free of charge

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