Pensions — Basic régime général plus Supplementary Agirc-Arrco

Retirement income in France is generally built on two pillars. The first pillar is the basic pension (régime de base), a branch of Sécurité sociale; for private-sector employees the standard is the régime général run by CNAV (Caisse nationale d'assurance vieillesse). The second pillar is the supplementary pension (régime complémentaire) — for private-sector employees this means Agirc-Arrco (the two former schemes were merged in 2019), which accrues separately on a points basis. Civil servants, the self-employed, and the liberal professions belong to other schemes, but contribution histories and totalisation can be viewed in one place at info-retraite.fr.

Core concepts:

• Statutory retirement age (âge légal de départ) — the 2023 reform is gradually raising the standard retirement age toward 64, with timing that depends on your year of birth (transitional rules apply). To draw a full pension at the full rate (taux plein, no reduction), you need both the statutory age and a sufficient number of contribution quarters (trimestres validés).
• Trimestres (quarters) — up to four can be credited per year, validated once your earnings cross a threshold. The total number of quarters needed for a full pension depends on your year of birth (rising in line with the reform).
• Calculating the basic pension — typically based on "the average of your best 25 years of earnings × the rate (taux) × (your quarters / required quarters)". A shortfall produces a reduction (décote); working past the requirement produces a bonus (surcote).
• Agirc-Arrco supplementary pension — points accumulated through contributions are converted using a point value (valeur de point) at retirement. Points are kept for life and survive job changes whether or not you have started drawing them.
• Minimum contributif and ASPA — if you have enough quarters but a very low pension, the minimum contributif may apply; residents with very low retirement income can apply for ASPA (Allocation de solidarité aux personnes âgées), a means-tested top-up.

Particularly important for people coming from Korea:

• Korea–France social security agreement (in force since 2007) — Korean National Pension contribution periods and French pension periods can be totalised. If you fall short of the minimum on one side alone, combining the two can still establish entitlement. You apply in each country separately, and each country pays a benefit proportional to the periods accrued there (totalisation, not double payment).
• EU/EEA/Switzerland totalisation — applied automatically under Regulation 883/2004. If you have worked in several EU countries, you file once with info-retraite.fr or your country of residence and the file is processed jointly.
• Receiving your pension after leaving France — accrued rights can generally be paid abroad. Withholding and reporting obligations depend on the country of residence and the relevant tax treaty.
• info-retraite.fr — a single screen showing points, quarters, and projected benefits across every scheme (basic, supplementary, civil-service, self-employed). Checking it once in your first year or two helps catch any missing periods early.

Official guidance: info-retraite.fr, lassuranceretraite.fr, agirc-arrco.fr