Baby years: Beneficial but misunderstood

The major debate on the pensions system announced by the government will begin in the autumn. If there is to be a reform – and there certainly will be, given the date of 2027 put forward by the Inspectorate General of Social Security as the start of the imbalance in the current system – we can expect every measure to be analysed and weighed up. This is what awaits baby years, a measure introduced in 1987 and subject to numerous modifications since then, the latest dating from 2022. But despite its age, this measure is often misunderstood. And this misunderstanding can lead to the permanent loss of entitlement to baby years, which is why it is so important to explain the terms and conditions.

Then, as now, the aim of the scheme is to "reward someone for bringing up a child", explains Alain Reuter, Chairman of the Caisse Nationale d'Assurance Pensions (CNAP). "The person benefits from an increase in income when they retire." Along with the higher family allowances, this was a way of encouraging households to have children by compensating for the impact that a child can have on a career and therefore on an insurance career, whether or not there has been a break from work.