Military Pensions, Court of Auditors Ruling: Access to Salary-Based System with Conscription Redemption

An epoch-making decision by the Court of Auditors is rewriting the pension future of thousands of military personnel and law enforcement officers. With the Landmark Ruling No. 8/2025/QM/SEZ, the accounting judges have swept away a long-standing dispute, establishing that personnel can redeem pre-role service periods, such as mandatory conscription or cadet courses, to reach the magic threshold of 18 years of contributory seniority by December 31, 1995. Reaching this milestone is crucial, as it guarantees access to or extension of the more advantageous Salary-Based Calculation System for pensions.

The controversy revolved around the possibility of "super-evaluating" these services by applying a 1/5 increase, and whether this option was blocked by the maximum limit of five years of total increases. The Court sided with the military on two crucial fronts. Firstly, it established that the right to increase and redeem arises at the moment the service is actually rendered, and not with the subsequent administrative redemption request and related payment. Secondly, the verdict clarifies that the redemption of "service periods in any case rendered" (Art. 5 of Legislative Decree 165/97) is allowed even for those who have already exceeded the five-year limit of increases, provided that the maximum ceiling of five total years of enhancement is not exceeded. This interpretation allows older periods to be valued, strategically placing them before 1996 and filling the necessary gap.

The Chronological Priority of Conscription Service

In fact, the Court recognizes the chronological priority of the service rendered: those who have completed periods of conscription or cadet courses that help them reach 18 years by 1995 can now exercise the right to redemption to ensure a pension calculated with the most favorable criteria. The personnel concerned, especially those close to retirement or with a contributory position straddling 1995, are called to immediately verify their position and promptly submit the redemption request for pre-role services performed before 1998, leveraging the principles established by this historic ruling.