- Valid DPI (national ID)
- IGSS affiliate number (NA) — appears on pay stubs
- Contribution history certificate — request at any IGSS office or Portal Afiliado
- For old-age: completed employment history form IVS-102
- For disability: IGSS medical board ruling
- For survivors: death certificate + marriage certificate + children's birth certificates
The IVS Program (Invalidez, Vejez y Sobrevivencia — Disability, Old-Age, Survivors) is the backbone of Guatemala’s pension system. It is one of the five formal IGSS programs — along with EMA (medical care), PRECAPI (domestic household workers), IPLENA (children and adolescents), and PLAN (IGSS internal employees).
IVS quick summary: IGSS’s long-term pension program. Covers 3 benefits: old-age pension (age 60 + 240 contributions), disability pension (36+ contributions + medical certification), survivor pension (widow/children when contributor dies). Old-age pension = 50% of the remuneracion base (average of the 60 months of contribution before you apply, Q9,000 cap) + 0.5% per 6 months contributed beyond 120: 60% with 240 months. Minimum pension: Q340/month. Funded by the standard IGSS contribution (4.83% employee + 10.67% employer — split internally between IVS and EMA).
Data verified against IGSS portal (igssgt.org), Decreto 295, and Acuerdos 466/1124/1257 — May 2026.
IVS Within IGSS — The Five Programs
IGSS is not a single program. It is an autonomous institution running five distinct programs defined in Decreto 295 and regulated by subsequent Board agreements:
| Program | Full name | What it covers |
|---|---|---|
| IVS | Invalidez, Vejez y Sobrevivencia | Long-term pensions (this page) |
| EMA | Enfermedad, Maternidad y Accidentes | Short-term medical care |
| PRECAPI | Proteccion para Trabajadoras de Casa | Domestic household workers (mandatory for the employer, Acuerdo 1235) |
| IPLENA | Incorporacion Plena de la Niñez y Adolescencia | Child protection programs |
| PLAN | Pensiones Trabajadores del IGSS | Internal IGSS employees |
When 4.83% IGSS is deducted from your salary each month, that contribution is distributed internally between IVS, EMA, and administration. The worker does not choose where it goes — the split is set by Acuerdo 1124. The key point: with that single monthly contribution you are automatically covered for both IVS and EMA.
The Three IVS Benefits
1. Old-Age Pension (Pension por Vejez)
The best-known benefit — the retirement pension. Granted when the worker reaches age 60 and has 240 monthly contributions (20 years contributed).
| Concept | Detail |
|---|---|
| Minimum age | 60 years |
| Minimum contributions | 240 monthly (20 years) — phased in historically |
| Base pension | 50% of the remuneracion base: average of the 60 months of contribution before you apply, capped at Q9,000 |
| Legal minimum pension | Q340/month |
| Seniority | +0.5% of the base per 6 months of contribution beyond the first 120 (240 months = +10 points) |
| Family allowance | +10% per qualifying dependant |
| Maximum pension | 80% of the remuneracion base; IGSS publishes Q7,200/month |
| Application cost | Free — no lawyer or tramitador needed |
If you worked from age 20 to 60 contributing regularly, you easily exceed 240 contributions. If you started late or had non-contributing periods, you may reach exactly the requirement by 60 — or continue contributing after 60 until you accumulate 240 (no maximum contributing age).
Old-age pension detailed process →
2. Disability Pension (Pension por Invalidez)
Granted when the worker becomes permanently incapacitated from performing their usual occupation or any work appropriate for their training. Independent of age — can be requested at any age.
| Concept | Detail |
|---|---|
| Minimum contributions | 36 contributions within the last 6 years before disability onset |
| Required ruling | IGSS Departamento de Medicina Legal y Evaluación de Incapacidades (Acuerdo 1124 art. 5) |
| Base pension | Calculated like the old-age pension (art. 9): 50% of the remuneracion base plus 0.5% per 6 months of contribution beyond 120; here the base is the average of the 36 months of contribution before the risk occurred (art. 29), capped at Q9,000 |
| Minimum pension | Q340/month |
| Additional allowances | For economic dependents (spouse, minor children) |
| Disability grades | Total (cannot earn more than 33% of the regular pay of a healthy worker in the same region) and Gran Invalidez (also needs another person’s help permanently), per art. 6 |
Disability can be caused by accident, chronic illness, or congenital condition. The IGSS medical board ruling is decisive — a private diagnosis alone is not enough. Under Acuerdo 1124 the incapacity is determined by IGSS’s Departamento de Medicina Legal y Evaluación de Incapacidades, and a disability pension is granted initially for one year (art. 11). IGSS does not publish a processing time on the pages we checked.
Disability pension detailed process →
3. Survivor Pension (Pension de Sobrevivencia)
Granted to dependent family members when an IGSS contributor or pensioner dies. The least-known benefit but critically important for Guatemalan families.
| Concept | Detail |
|---|---|
| Minimum contributions (active contributor) | 36 contributions in the six years immediately before death; Art. 23 provides an accident exception |
| Minimum contributions (IVS pensioner) | Any amount (already pensioned) |
| Beneficiaries | Widow/widower, children under 18, or older children incapacitated for work, dependent parents |
| Widow/widower pension | 50% of deceased’s base pension |
| Per-child pension | 25% of base pension; 50% for an orphan of both parents. Under 18, or older if incapacitated for work (Arts. 24-26) |
| Parent pension | 25% if economically dependent |
| Combined maximum | 100% of deceased’s base pension |
Having fewer than 36 contributions does not always exclude a survivor pension: Article 23 treats the contribution condition as met for a death caused by an accident while affiliated, if the accident-subsidy requirements were met. Article 22 also covers a deceased person already entitled to an old-age pension.
Survivor pension detailed process →
How IVS Is Funded
IGSS publishes a worker share of 4.83% and an employer share of 10.67%, 15.5% of salary in total (igssgt.org notice of 3 October 2022, read 7 October 2026). The employer also pays 1% to INTECAP and 1% to IRTRA, which brings the employer total to 12.67% (Prensa Libre, 1 February 2023, read 8 October 2026); those two points do not go to IGSS.
| Concept | Rate | Who pays |
|---|---|---|
| IGSS employer share | 10.67% | Employer (company) |
| IGSS worker share | 4.83% | Employee (deducted from salary) |
| IGSS total | 15.5% | |
| INTECAP + IRTRA | 2% | Employer only |
Of the IGSS share, IVS (pensions) takes 5.5%: 3.67% from the employer and 1.83% from the worker (IGSS Acuerdo 1124 and an IGSS notice of 12 December 2022). The rest, 7 points of the employer share and 3 of the worker share by our arithmetic, funds EMA and IGSS’s other programs; we did not find a published split of that remainder. What matters for you as worker or employer: you pay ONE monthly contribution and IGSS distributes it.
IGSS contribution calculator →
Who Can Access IVS — By Worker Type
Formal Employee (Employer-Worker Relationship)
If you work for a formal company (salaried with payroll), you are automatically enrolled in IVS from the first month your employer affiliates you with IGSS. Your IVS contributions accumulate in your personal IGSS file.
Former Salaried Worker (Voluntary Contribution)
If you stop being an obligatory contributor (you leave salaried work), you can keep paying into IVS under the voluntary contribution program — but only if you have at least 12 paid obligatory contributions to IVS in the last 36 calendar months. You pay 5.5% (3.67% + 1.83%) of your last complete obligatory salary, and you apply in writing during the calendar year after your last month of contribution (Acuerdo 1124 art. 35; IGSS’s requirements sheet says “the following month”, see the voluntary contribution page). It lets you keep completing contributions toward the pension; it includes no medical care, and the right is lost after three consecutive unpaid months. A freelancer who never had formal employment does not meet the 12-in-36 condition.
Correction, 23 September 2026. An earlier version of this page said anyone working on their own could join IGSS voluntarily by paying 4.83% of a declared base salary. IGSS’s March 2026 guidance says voluntary contribution (Acuerdo 1124 de Junta Directiva) is only for people who stopped being obligatory contributors and have at least 12 paid IVS contributions in the last 36 calendar months; it costs 5.5% of the last complete obligatory salary and covers IVS pensions only, with no medical care. See our corrections policy.
Domestic Household Worker (PRECAPI)
Household domestic workers are not in the general Decreto 295 regime. They fall under the PRECAPI program, which IGSS Acuerdo 1235 makes mandatory for employers of a worker on three or more days a week in Guatemala department; the employer (family) and the worker pay the contribution. PRECAPI covers maternity, accidents and well-child care, only in Guatemala department — it has no IVS pension component, so PRECAPI quarters do not build an old-age pension (IGSS, 2 October 2023).
Migrant Worker (Diaspora)
If you worked formally in Guatemala and then migrated to USA/Spain/elsewhere, your IGSS contributions are not lost — they remain accumulated. The OISS list of countries applying the Ibero-American Convention, published on 8 September 2026 and checked on 2 November 2026, does not include Guatemala; it does not support combining Spanish contributions with IGSS contributions. If there is NO agreement (USA case), only Guatemalan contributions count.
Quick Pension Calculator — Old-Age
If your average salary over the last 60 months was:
| Avg monthly salary | Remuneracion base (Q9,000 cap) | With 240 contributions (60%) | With 300 contributions (65%) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Q3,500 | Q3,500 | Q2,100 | Q2,275 |
| Q5,000 | Q5,000 | Q3,000 | Q3,250 |
| Q8,000 | Q8,000 | Q4,800 | Q5,200 |
| Q12,000 | Q9,000 | Q5,400 | Q5,850 |
| Q18,000 | Q9,000 | Q5,400 | Q5,850 |
| Q25,000 | Q9,000 | Q5,400 | Q5,850 |
Our arithmetic with Acuerdo 1124 arts. 16 and 29: 50% of the remuneracion base + 0.5% per six months of contribution beyond 120 (240 months = 60%; 300 months = 65%), no family allowances. Minimum pension Q340/month; ceiling 80% of the base (Q7,200 at the maximum base). Corrected 1 October 2026: the previous table applied only the 50%, ignored the Q9,000 cap and showed pensions up to Q13,750, above the Q7,200 maximum IGSS publishes.
Common Mistakes with IVS
1. Believing IGSS = only medical care. IVS is the other half — your retirement pension depends on the same contributor.
2. Not reviewing contributions annually. The Portal Afiliado shows all reported contributions. Small employer omissions (e.g., 1-2 months not reported) can cost years at the end.
3. Thinking US contributions count. If you worked in the USA and contributed to Social Security, those do NOT count toward IGSS — no agreement exists. If you left salaried work in Guatemala with at least 12 paid obligatory contributions in the last 36 months, voluntary contribution is the route IGSS publishes for continuing IVS contributions. From abroad, IGSS also runs the Migrant Worker programme (Q1,000 a month, IGSS Board Acuerdo 1543): see IGSS Migrant Worker.
4. Believing you must leave your job to apply. Article 15 of Acuerdo 1124 requires age and contributions; it does not require termination of employment. The August 2026 IGSS requirements sheet does not request a termination certificate.
5. Forgetting about survivor benefits. Many Guatemalan widows do not know they qualify. If your husband contributed to IGSS and died, file the claim — even years later.
Official Resources
- IGSS Contact Center: 1522 (free from within Guatemala)
- Main offices PBX: 2412-1224 / 2297-1224
- Address: 7a. Avenida 22-72 Zona 1, Guatemala City
- Portal Afiliado IGSS — check contributions
- CATAFI Portal — certificates
- Main site: igssgt.org
Related IGSS Pages
- Guatemala Tramites — IGSS (Spanish hub)
- Worker Initial Affiliation — first formal job
- Old-Age Pension Detailed — step-by-step
- Disability Pension Detailed — medical process
- Survivor Pension — for widow and children
- Voluntary Contribution IGSS — former salaried contributors (pensions only)
- IGSS Contribution Calculator — calculate your deduction
- IGSS Migrant Worker — diaspora and treaties
- IGSS EMA Medical Care — medical coverage component
- Healthcare Guatemala — full healthcare system overview