Retirement and pensions
Your pension comes from a compulsory scheme that depends on where you work. For private-sector employees it is capped at 4,200 MAD a month, so anyone earning more than 6,000 MAD needs a top-up to keep their standard of living.
Compulsory for employees
At a glance
- Who needs it
- Employees and civil servants by law. The self-employed and higher earners need their own plan
- Rates
- CNSS: 50% of the reference salary after 3,240 days, up to 70%. Reference salary capped at 6,000 MAD
- Key deadline
- From age 60 at CNSS and RCAR, 63 for civil servants. 1,320 days now open a CNSS pension
- Who runs it
- CNSS, CMR and RCAR for basic pensions. CIMR and insurers for top-ups
The compulsory schemes
| You are | Basic scheme | Retirement age |
|---|---|---|
| A private-sector employee | CNSS | 60 |
| A civil servant or a member of the armed forces | CMR, Caisse Marocaine des Retraites | 63 for civil servants |
| Staff of a public establishment, or contract staff of the State | RCAR | 60 |
| Self-employed, professional, trader, farmer | The scheme for non-salaried workers, being rolled out by CNSS | Ask CNSS |
Registration is the employer's duty. For CNSS, the pension and short-term benefits contribution is 4.48% of the salary for the employee and 8.98% for the employer, calculated on the salary up to 6,000 MAD a month.
See the deductions on a payslip
Law 99-15 created a pension scheme for non-salaried workers, run by CNSS and based on points. It is being extended profession by profession. Ask CNSS whether yours is covered and what you would pay. Until then, your retirement depends on what you save yourself.
The CNSS pension: rules in 2026
The pension depends on two things: the number of days declared for you, and your average declared salary over the last 96 months, counted up to 6,000 MAD.
| Days declared at age 60 | What you receive |
|---|---|
| 3,240 or more | 50% of the reference salary, plus 1 point for every 216 days above 3,240, up to 70% |
| 1,320 to 3,239 | A pension in proportion to your days, with a legal minimum |
| Fewer than 1,320 | No pension. You can recover the contributions or continue through voluntary insurance |
- Highest CNSS pension
- 4,200 MADa month, which is 70% of 6,000 MAD
- Minimum pension at 3,240 days
- 1,000 MADa month
- Days needed to open a pension
- 1,320since 1 May 2025, instead of 3,240
A full month of work counts as 26 days, so 3,240 days is a little over ten years of full-time declared work, and 1,320 days a little over four years.
Minimum pension between 1,320 and 3,239 days, under law 02-24:
| Days declared | Minimum monthly pension |
|---|---|
| 1,320 to 1,704 | 600 MAD |
| 1,705 to 2,088 | 700 MAD |
| 2,089 to 2,472 | 800 MAD |
| 2,473 to 2,856 | 900 MAD |
| 2,857 to 3,239 | 1,000 MAD |
How declared days become a CNSS pension
Pension, as a share of the reference salary
Days declared
- No pension: contributions can be recovered
- Minimum pension of 600 to 1,000 MAD a month
- 50%, plus 1 point for every 216 days
- 1,320 days, about 4 years
- 3,240 days, about 10 years
- 7,560 days, about 24 years: the 70% maximum
Three practical points:
- Check your record every year. Your days and salaries are on macnss.ma. A month that your employer did not declare is a month lost, unless you have it corrected.
- Early retirement. It is possible from 55 with 3,240 days, with the employer's agreement, because the employer must pay CNSS a premium.
- Your family. After your death, a survivor's pension goes to your spouse and to your children under the age limits.
No further reform of the pension schemes had been adopted by autumn 2026, although one is under discussion.
Complementary pensions
A basic pension rarely replaces a full salary. Three kinds of top-up exist.
- CIMR. The Caisse Interprofessionnelle Marocaine de Retraites is the main complementary scheme of the private sector. Your employer joins and you both contribute. Your rights are counted in points. Individuals and the self-employed can also join through its individual product.
- Company retirement contracts. Some employers take out a group retirement contract with an insurer and pay part of the contributions. Ask your human-resources department.
- Public-sector top-ups. CMR offers an optional scheme called Attakmili, and RCAR has a complementary scheme for salaries above its ceiling.
When you change employer, ask in writing what happens to the rights you have built up.
Retirement savings with an insurer
A retirement savings contract (retraite complémentaire or épargne retraite) is an individual savings plan held with an insurer or through a bank. You pay in regularly, the savings earn returns, and from the agreed age you receive a capital sum or an annuity.
Its advantage is tax relief on what you pay in, under three conditions: the contract lasts at least eight years, benefits are paid from the age of 45, and the deduction stays within the legal limit.
Compare contracts on four points: the entry and management fees, the rates credited in recent years, the freedom to change or stop your payments, and the choice between capital and annuity at the end. See savings and capitalisation for the questions to ask.
Tax
| Income or payment | Rule in 2026 |
|---|---|
| Pension from a basic scheme: CNSS, CMR, RCAR | Exempt from income tax since 1 January 2026 |
| Collective complementary pension from CIMR | Exempt under the 2026 finance law |
| Contributions to a retirement savings contract | Deductible up to 10% of taxable income, or up to 50% of net taxable salary for people whose only income is a salary |
| Payout from a retirement savings contract | Taxed after an allowance of 70% up to 168,000 MAD and 40% above, spread over four years |
| Payout from an ordinary savings contract of at least 8 years | Exempt from income tax |
Tax rules change with each finance law. Check with the tax administration or your pension fund before you decide.
Questions
At what age can I retire?
At 60 in the private sector, 63 for civil servants. If you have not reached 3,240 days at 60, you can usually keep working to build more days. The CNSS pension is paid once you have stopped all salaried work.
I have fewer than 1,320 days. Is everything lost?
No. You can ask CNSS to pay back the contributions, or keep building rights through voluntary insurance. Voluntary insurance has conditions and a time limit for applying after you leave your job, so ask CNSS without delay.
I worked in the public and the private sector, or abroad. How are my rights added up?
Periods in different Moroccan schemes can be combined under coordination rules, and Morocco has social-security agreements with many countries. Ask each fund for a statement of your career, well before you retire.
What does my family receive after my death?
A survivor's pension: half of your pension for your spouse, and a share for each child under the age limits. Death cover and life insurance come on top: see death and disability cover.
My employer declares a lower salary than I am paid. Does it matter?
Yes. Your pension, your daily sickness allowances and your family's survivor rights are all calculated on the declared salary. Check macnss.ma, ask the employer in writing to correct it, and report it to CNSS if nothing changes.
I am self-employed. What should I do?
Find out from CNSS whether the pension scheme for non-salaried workers already applies to your profession. Whatever the answer, start a retirement savings contract or another long-term plan early: the rights you will draw from the compulsory scheme are modest.