Frequently asked Questions about the Digital Proof of Life

The annual proof of life ensures that the pension is only paid to living persons.

The Pension Service checks once a year on behalf of your pension provider whether you are still alive. This ensures that the pension is only paid to living persons.

We are sorry to hear that your loved one has passed away. We want to make sure that we don't add to your burden. If you or the funeral home has already informed us about the death of the pension beneficiary, you do not have do anything else. Your message about the passing of the pension beneficiary overlapped with the request for annual proof of life.

If you have not yet notified us, please fill out the global notification of change form ("Änderungsanzeige weltweit"). It can be found on the Print forms page of our website.

Please send the change notification to the following address:

Deutsche Post AG

Niederlassung Renten Service

13496 Berlin

Deutschland

That may happen for different reasons:

  • You conducted the POSTIDENT identity check after July 31st 2026. In this case, the letter may have been sent before the check was fully processed. If you have been notified both in the POSTIDENT app and by e-mail that you passed the identity check, you don't have to do anything else. Please also see the question: "How and when will I get the results of the POSTIDENT identity check?"

  • The POSTIDENT identification process was not completed.  In this case, check the status of your identity check in the app or your e-mails. Please also see the question: "How and when will I get the results of the POSTIDENT identity check?"

  • You didn't provide proof of life for all the pensions you receive. If you have received more than one notification regarding digital proof of life, you must submit the proof for each letter.

  • You used another person's QR code. In this case, you must submit proof of life again. Please also see the FAQ response to: "I used another person's QR code. What should I do?"

In an increasing number of countries, no proof of life is needed since the data is automatically forwarded to Renten Service. If your pension adjustment notification does not include a proof-of-life request, you do not need to take any further action that year.

Pension beneficiaries can now fulfill the annual proof of life requirement digitally. If you choose to do so, you do not need to fill out the certificate of life form.

Digital proof of life may be provided using the POSTIDENT app on your smartphone or tablet. POSTIDENT is a service of Deutsche Post AG.

The process is convenient. You can submit digital proof of life from the comfort of your own home, regardless of public holidays or opening hours. If you choose to do so, you do not need to fill out the certificate of life form. That saves you time and money.

No. Either of the following two options is sufficient as proof of life:

Digital proof of life - conveniently completed online

or

Life certificate - sent by letter mail to the Pension Service

Only you, the pension beneficiary, can use the Digital Proof of Life process for your pension. You cannot authorize another person to do so on your behalf by issuing a power of attorney. Family members, caregivers and legal guardians also may not perform the Digital Proof of Life process for you.

 

If you are unable to submit digital proof of life, please use the certificate of life form. Important information on the topic can be found online at rentenservice.de/LB

 

No, that is unfortunately not possible. Only you, the pension beneficiary, can use the Digital Proof of Life process for your pension. If another person performs the process on your behalf, the proof of life requirement will be deemed unmet.

If you are unable to submit digital proof of life, please use the certificate of life form. Important information on the topic can be found online at rentenservice.de/LB

No, that is unfortunately not possible. Only you, the pension beneficiary, can use the Digital Proof of Life process for your pension. If you are unable to submit digital proof of life, please use the certificate of life form. Important information on the topic can be found online at rentenservice.de/LB

No. The Digital Proof of Life process is free. If at any point you are asked to give a credit card number, a security code or your PIN, you should immediately end the process. POSTIDENT and Renten Service will never ask you to provide this kind of information.

To restart the identification process with POSTIDENT, please use the link in the e-mail "Ihre Identifizierung für rentenservice.de/DLN" (Your identification for rentenservice.de/Digital Proof of Life) that you received from POSTIDENT.

If you have passed a POSTIDENT identity check and have heard nothing further from Renten Service, that means your proof of life was successful.

If for some reason the proof of life was not successful, Renten Service will contact you.

If you do not receive any post due to the current conditions in your country of residence, you can use your personal QR code from last year's letter instead.  Alternatively, you can request new access online at rentenservice.de/DLNersatz.

You can use the personal QR code from last year's letter. Alternatively, you can request new access online at rentenservice.de/DLNersatz.

Perform the Digital Proof of Life process once again using your own personal QR code.

Please note that this is only possible if your personal QR code has not been used by another person.

If another person used your QR code, that means you have not yet met the annual proof of life requirement. Submit the digital proof of life one more time. 

You will receive a message from us that will show you how to provide proof of life before the deadline. 

Apart from the letter, you can use our website to request new access to the Digital Proof of Life process at any time between July 7 and October 31 at rentenservice.de/DLNersatz.

If you receive this message, that means you have already successfully scanned your QR code and begun the POSTIDENT ID check. To continue with the process, use the link that you received by e-mail from POSTIDENT. The sender of the e-mail is "no-reply@deutschepost.de" and the subject line is "Ihre Identifizierung für rentenservice.de/DLN". If you don't find it in your inbox, check your spam folder.

The transaction number is generated during the identification process. We show you how to do that in our instructional video and the step-by-step instructions for providing digital proof of life.

Please note:

the ID number is not stated in the digital proof of life notification.

POSTIDENT will e-mail you important information regarding your identity check. The e-mail will include such things as your 12-digit case ID number and the results of the ID check. Please make sure that your e-mail address is written correctly.

POSTIDENT will never send you advertising or offers that are subject to a fee.

It's not absolutely necessary to have your own e-mail address. You may also use the e-mail address of a trusted person. Or you could ask a trusted person to help you set up an e-mail address.

Yes. The POSTIDENT identity check is available around the clock seven days per week. 

POSTIDENT accepts identity cards, residence permits with an ID function and passports, as well as other documents. We've put together a list of all the documents we accept.

Please note:

POSTIDENT does not automatically accept the ID that is commonly used in your country.

No. The original identity document must be used.

Unfortunately, that means you may not use the Digital Proof of Life service. Please use the certificate of life form. Important information on the topic can be found online at rentenservice.de/LB

We show you how to do that in the POSTIDENT app.

We show you how to do that in the POSTIDENT app.

POSTIDENT generally sends the results of an identity check within 24 hours. The results will be displayed in the app and sent to you by e-mail. The e-mail sender is "no-reply@deutschepost.de." The subject line is "Ihre Identifizierung mit POSTIDENT durch AutoID für rentenservice.de/DLN." If you don't find it in your inbox, check your spam folder. 

  • Positive result message: Passed ("Erledigt"). 
  • Negative result message: Please repeat the POSTIDENT identity check ("Identifizierung mit POSTIDENT wiederholen"). You may use your case ID number once again.

The e-mail will contain information about what to do next.

Yes. Once you have entered your case ID number, the status of your identity check will be displayed in the app.

No. If you passed the check, Renten Service will be automatically notified. No further action is required on your part.

If POSTIDENT shows a different status, please follow the instructions displayed in the app.

If you have passed a POSTIDENT identity check and have heard nothing further from Renten Service, that means your proof of life was successful.

If for some reason the proof of life was not successful, Renten Service will contact you.

You can provide digital proof of life until September 25. After that date, you may use the certificate of life form. Important information on the topic can be found online at rentenservice.de/LB

The pension payment can then no longer be paid from the end of October 2026.

In an increasing number of countries, no proof of life is needed since the data is automatically forwarded to Renten Service. If your pension adjustment notification does not include a proof-of-life request, you do not need to take any further action that year.