Iran's Social Security chief: monthly payroll obligation at 142 trillion tomans, contributor-to-pensioner ratio down to 3.7

Mostafa Salari, chief executive of Iran's Social Security Organization, said on Wednesday 29 July 2026, in a meeting with the governor of Zanjan province and its members of parliament, that the ratio of contributors to pensioners has fallen from 4.8 in earlier periods to 3.7, which he called a dangerous level for the fund's sustainability.

He said the organization carries a monthly payroll obligation of 142 trillion tomans while contribution income is running below costs because 1.2 million contributors have dropped off its rolls. Salari added that the organization has implemented the third stage of pension realignment but faces a shortfall of 82 trillion tomans for the Farvardin and Ordibehesht arrears, for which no funding source has yet been identified. He also said the organization is working to settle its debts to medical centres, medical universities and pharmacies by the end of Bahman (late February 2027).

Salari cited early retirements, hazardous-occupation rules and rising life expectancy as factors unbalancing the fund, and reported a banking model designed to defer employer contributions plus a proposal to change the pension calculation basis from the final two years to a points-based method.