A retiree in France with a recognised disability can borrow, because a retirement pension is stable lifetime income that banks value. The difficulty lies elsewhere, in borrower insurance, where a medical history leads to extra premiums, exclusions or refusals. The AERAS convention (the French framework for insuring borrowers with an aggravated health risk) exists precisely to help overcome them.
Most people on a French invalidity pension switch to retirement at the legal pension age. Their pension d'invalidité is then replaced by an old-age pension awarded for inaptitude (unfitness for work), paid at the full rate even if they lack some contribution quarters, unless they keep working. The change of status alters the nature of the income shown to a lender, but not necessarily its amount. Anyone also receiving a disability or invalidity pension from the UK, Ireland or another country should check separately how that country treats it at pension age.
How the bank reads your income after the switch
For a lender, a retirement pension for inaptitude is more reassuring than an invalidity pension, which can be reviewed if health improves. It is paid for life and uprated each year, by 0.9 % on 1 January 2026 for the basic schemes. Any supplements, such as the majoration pour tierce personne (the extra amount for needing a carer), are earmarked for the disability.
Worked example: Stephen, 64, previously on a category 2 invalidity pension, now receives 1,380 euros of basic pension and 440 euros of supplementary pension, 1,820 euros in total. For an adapted vehicle costing 16,000 euros over five years, at an assumed 6 %, the repayment before insurance comes to about 309 euros, roughly 17 % of his income.
Can the AAH top up the pension?
A retiree with an incapacity rate of at least 80 % can keep a differential AAH (allocation aux adultes handicapés, the adult disability allowance) if the pension is lower than the allowance. Banks sometimes include it in the calculation, cautiously, because the amount varies with other resources. It is safer to present a financing plan that works without it.
Disability benefits do not repay credit
The PCH (prestation de compensation du handicap, the disability compensation benefit) can fund the adaptation of a vehicle or home if the disability met the criteria before age 60. It is claimed from the MDPH (the departmental disability office) and reduces the amount you need to borrow. Because it is tied to the expense, it should not appear as income in the debt calculation.
What creditors cannot seize
If repayments become difficult, the AAH and the PCH cannot be seized by a creditor. This protects the borrower, but it also explains why a lender will not treat them as security for repayment.
Borrower insurance: the real issue for a disabled retiree
After retirement, disability and incapacity guarantees are generally no longer offered: IPT (total permanent incapacity, triggered from 66 % disability) and PTIA (total and irreversible loss of autonomy) usually stop at retirement or around 65. The lender mainly requires death cover, for which the insurer examines the medical file.
| Mechanism | What it brings | Limit for a retiree |
|---|---|---|
| AERAS convention | Three-level review, up to a pool of reinsurers | Age and amount capped by the convention |
| Right to be forgotten | No need to declare cancer or hepatitis C five years after treatment ends | Only without relapse |
| AERAS reference grid | Capped or no extra premium for listed conditions | Closed list |
| Lemoine law | No health questionnaire | Loans of 200,000 euros or less ending before 60: out of reach for retirees |
| External insurance (délégation) | Choice of an insurer specialised in aggravated risks | Cover at least equivalent to what the lender requires |
How does the AERAS review work?
The file is first assessed under standard rules. If refused, a second level carries out an individual analysis, possibly with further medical tests. If the refusal stands, a third level submits the file to a pool of reinsurers. Each level can end in an offer with an exclusion or an extra premium.
Why a specialist broker helps
A borrower-insurance broker approaches several insurers used to aggravated risks and compares the real cost, expressed as the TAEA (the annual effective insurance rate). For Stephen, an extra premium could double the cost of death cover; it must remain compatible with the 8.56 % usury ceiling applying to consumer loans above 6,000 euros in the fourth quarter of 2026.
When no insurer will cover you
The lender may accept alternative security: a pledge over an assurance-vie or a securities account, a guarantee from a relative, or a mortgage charge on a property. For a small amount, some lenders even lend without insurance, provided the budget is very solid.
Frequent refusals and how to avoid them
Leaving a condition out of the health questionnaire is the most serious mistake: the insurer can invoke false declaration and refuse to pay, leaving the debt to your heirs. It is far better to declare precisely and attach a recent report from your médecin traitant (registered GP) showing that your health is stable. Medical reports written in English should be translated.
The second mistake is presenting the old invalidity pension certificate instead of the retirement award notice. The lender then assumes reviewable income and applies a discount. The third is asking for too long a term, which pushes up the insurance cost sharply. A term of four to seven years is often the best compromise for equipment.
Steps to borrow with a recognised disability
- Gather the retirement-for-inaptitude award notice and statements for every supplementary pension.
- Apply to the MDPH for the PCH or other help before fixing the amount to borrow.
- Ask a broker specialised in aggravated health risks for an insurance quote.
- Compare the insured bank offer with an offer backed by alternative security.
- Check the final APR against the quarter's usury ceiling.
- Keep any written AERAS refusal, so you can challenge it.
Alternatives to conventional credit
For needs below a few thousand euros, supported personal microcredit through a charity or a Crédit municipal often requires no insurance. A pawn loan involves no medical condition at all. Pension funds can also grant one-off help to a disabled retiree facing an unexpected cost.
What about buying a more accessible home?
A retiree who owns a home can finance a more accessible flat with the sale proceeds of the old property, a bridging loan or a lifetime mortgage. These options reduce or remove the need for death cover. With a bridging loan, the short term, often two years at most, also limits the cost of any extra premium, and the usury ceiling for bridging loans, set at 6.49 % for the fourth quarter of 2026, caps the overall cost.
Frequently asked questions
Does my invalidity pension stop automatically at retirement? It is replaced at the legal age by a retirement pension for inaptitude, unless you keep working and ask to retain it.
Can a bank refuse a loan because of my disability? A refusal cannot rest on the disability itself, which would be discrimination, but it can follow from an insurance refusal or insufficient income.
Does the right to be forgotten apply after 70? It does not depend on age, only on the time elapsed since the end of treatment and the absence of relapse.
Can I change insurer after signing? Yes, the Lemoine law lets you cancel at any time, provided the new policy offers equivalent cover.
Organisations and offers to contact
- Magnolia – borrowing with a health risk : Borrower-insurance broker guide on getting a loan with a medical history: AERAS levels, extra premiums, exclusions and how to compare specialist insurers.
- Réassurez-moi – IPT and PTIA explained : Clear explanation by an insurance broker of the difference between the IPT and PTIA guarantees and the ages at which each cover usually ends.
- AERAS convention : Official information site of the convention that helps people with an aggravated health risk obtain borrower insurance, including the right to be forgotten.