Pension after divorce – what happens when your former spouse dies?

Introduction – the question no one asks until it's too late

Divorce marks a new chapter for most people. The estate is divided, the children are allocated residency and contact arrangements, and life moves on. What few are aware of is that certain pension rights linked to the former spouse can survive the divorce itself – and have significant implications many years later.

When a former spouse dies, questions arise about who inherits the pension. Do you, as a divorced person, have any claim? And what happens if the deceased remarried? These questions are governed by two different sets of rules that are often confused or overlooked: Section 86 of the Marriage Act and Section 17-4, second paragraph, of the National Insurance Act (formerly Section 17-10).

This article gives you a clear and up-to-date review of current law.

Pension is not inheritance – a fundamental distinction

The first and most important thing to understand is that, as a general rule, pensions are not part of the deceased's estate and are therefore not distributed according to the rules of inheritance law. Pensions are a right that arises directly by virtue of law or agreement, and depending on the type of scheme, will either cease upon death, be paid to named beneficiaries, or accrue to survivors under specific legal provisions.

This means that neither a will, a prenuptial agreement, nor a separation agreement can, as a general rule, regulate who receives the deceased's pension. The rights follow the law or the insurance agreement.

The Marriage Act § 86 – the right to a spouse's pension from the employer's pension scheme

What the provision says

Section 86 of the Marriage Act is the central provision for a divorced spouse's right to spousal pension from a pension scheme other than the national insurance scheme, i.e. public service pensions and private collective pension schemes with mandatory membership.

The text of the Act stipulates the following:

«A divorced spouse retains the right to a survivor's pension from a pension scheme other than the National Insurance scheme if the marriage lasted at least ten years, and the divorced spouse was at least 45 years old at the time of the divorce.»

The ruling is conditional on the other spouse in the divorce being or having been a member of such a pension scheme that includes a spousal pension. If this condition is met, the divorced spouse also has a right to a spousal pension from a scheme that the deceased had joined after the divorce.

The terms summarised

For the Marriage Act § 86 to grant entitlement to a spouse's pension, three cumulative conditions must be met:

Terms and conditions	Demand
Length of marriage	At least 10 years
Age of divorced people at divorce	At least 45 years
Deceased's pension membership	Was or would have been a member of a pension scheme with a spouse's pension

The claim lapses if the divorced person remarries.

What is covered – and what is not

The provision covers public pension schemes (such as the Norwegian Public Service Pension Fund and municipal schemes) and private collective schemes with mandatory membership. Individual pension insurance policies, IPS, and deferred annuity policies from terminated employment will.

The competition between an ex-spouse and a new spouse – the pro rata principle

If the deceased was remarried at the time of their death, and the new spouse is also entitled to a spouse’s pension, the pension is apportioned in proportion to the number of years of marriage to the divorced spouse and the new spouse, respectively. This pro rata principle is set out in section 87 of the Marriage Act.

Example: The deceased was married to a divorced spouse for 18 years and to a new spouse for 7 years. The total marriage period is 25 years. The divorced spouse is then entitled to 18/25 of the survivor's pension, and the new spouse to 7/25 – provided that both otherwise meet the conditions.

The National Insurance Act – from old § 17-10 to new § 17-4

The legal status before 1 January 2024 – the abolished § 17-10

Up to and including 31 December 2023, entitlement to survivors’ benefits under the National Insurance Scheme for divorced persons was governed by Section 17-10 of the National Insurance Act. Under the first paragraph of that provision, a divorced surviving spouse was entitled to benefits if the following cumulative conditions were met:

The marriage had lasted at least 25 years, or at least 15 years if the parties
No more than five years had passed since the divorce
The surviving spouse had not remarried

The second paragraph of the provision opened up an important exception: if more than five years had passed since the divorce, benefits could still be granted provided that the divorced survivor was wholly or partly supported by contributions from the deceased. In this assessment, emphasis was to be placed on the duration of the marriage and the survivor's age, factors which together were intended to express a genuine need for readjustment.

These regulations were repealed with effect from 1 January 2024.

Applicable law from 1 January 2024 – new § 17-4 second paragraph

With the entry into force of Act 18 June 2021 No. 97 on amendments to the National Insurance Act (new survivor benefits), the entire Chapter 17 was reorganised, and the new benefit is called transition support. The main idea is that the support should help survivors to adjust to a new life situation.

The main rule is now clear and strict: divorced individuals are generally not entitled to a transitional allowance when their former spouse dies. This is a significant restriction compared to the previous Section 17-10.

The exception is set out in section 17-4, second paragraph, of the Act.

The maintenance requirement has been tightened. While the old § 17-10, second paragraph, merely required that the survivor was «wholly or partially» supported by the deceased, the current § 17-4, second paragraph, requires that the individual was «wholly or substantially» supported. According to a natural interpretation of the wording, «substantially» implies a qualified requirement; the contribution must have been necessary for maintenance, not merely a benefit or supplement to one's own income.

The provisions regarding marital duration and age have been removed. Previously, section 17-10, second paragraph, obliged the authorities to consider the duration of the marriage and the survivor's age. This provision has not been carried forward. The preparatory works do not provide any justification for this, but purpose considerations suggest that the right to a benefit nonetheless exists when the dependency condition is met – as those who actually fulfil the stricter requirement will normally have a genuine need for readjustment.

The requirement regarding the duration of the marriage has, incidentally, been retained under the new scheme: the marriage must have lasted for at least 25 years, or at least 15 years if the parties had children together.

Pension schemes through an employer, paid-up policies and annuities

Pension scheme through employer

In the private sector, the law does not require pension schemes to include a spouse’s pension. Many schemes do so nonetheless. The decisive factor is the insurance contract and the pension terms and conditions. Section 86 of the Marriage Act applies only to schemes with compulsory membership; voluntary group life or pension contracts are excluded, and in such cases the beneficiary rules in the Insurance Contracts Act apply.

Police sting

A paid-up policy arises when employment under a defined-benefit scheme comes to an end. It is a personally accrued entitlement, and any rights of survivors are governed by the terms and conditions of the insurance policy – not by Section 86 of the Marriage Act.

IPS and annuities

As a general rule, funds held in an IPS account form part of the estate and are distributed in accordance with the rules of inheritance law. A divorced spouse has no statutory priority. Annuities and private pension insurance are governed by section 15-1 et seq. of the Insurance Contracts Act and the individual contract; in this case, the policyholder themselves determines who the beneficiary is.

A common pitfall: Many people forget to update their beneficiary clauses following a divorce. It sometimes happens that the ex-spouse receives a payout because the policyholder never updated the beneficiary register. This cannot be reversed once the payout has been made. Check the beneficiary register with all your insurers immediately following a divorce.

The key action points – for you, the reader

Pensions are long-term, but the decisions you make today, or fail to make, can have consequences that last for decades.

If you are divorced and your ex-spouse dies

Check if the marriage lasted at least 10 years and if you were over 45 years old at the time of the divorce. If both conditions are met, you may be entitled to a spouse's pension under Section 86 of the Marriage Act.
Consider if you were actually supported by the deceased through contributions. Only then can you be entitled to a survivor's pension under § 17-4, second paragraph (for deaths occurring from 1 January 2024).
Contact the deceased's pension provider (SPK, KLP or private provider) and ask explicitly about the divorced spouse's rights within the relevant scheme.
Provide evidence of your financial circumstances to NAV if you believe you are entitled to support; the burden of proof lies with you to show that the support was necessary for your livelihood.

If you've just divorced

Map out which pension rights you are entitled to after the divorce. If you do not meet the conditions according to the law, this represents a future financial loss, and that loss should be compensated through the distribution of other assets in the division of the estate.
Update all beneficiary registers with pension providers, life assurance companies and banks.
Documents showing whether you receive any benefits and whether these are essential to your livelihood. This may be a decisive factor in the event of a future death.

Concluding remark

The reform that came into effect on 1 January 2024 marks a fundamental distinction in Norwegian social security law: whereas the law previously recognised a general solidarity between former spouses based on the length of the marriage, there is now a requirement for a real and qualified dependency situation to be eligible for benefits from the National Insurance scheme.

For occupational pensions, the legal situation is more stable – Section 86 of the Marriage Act still provides a robust entitlement for those who meet the 10-year and 45-year criteria, irrespective of financial dependency.

Overall, the picture is as follows: two sets of legislation, two different sets of conditions, and very different levels of protection depending on the type of pension in question. Anyone who is unfamiliar with these rules risks missing out on their entitlements – or failing to plan for them.

The article is based on current law as of 2026, including Act of 4 July 1991 no. 47 concerning marriage (el.) §§ 86–87, Act of 28 February 1997 no. 19 on the National Insurance (ftrl.) § 17-4, second paragraph, Act of 18 June 2021 no. 97 on amendments to the National Insurance Act (new survivor benefits), as well as the commentary edition to ftrl. § 17-10 and § 17-4 by research leader Eva Annie Bjørgen, Ministry of Labour and Inclusion (Lovdata Pro, updated 27.03.2026).