Joe Biden may receive pension larger than his presidential salary, report finds
WASHINGTON, DC: Former President Joe Biden could be eligible for a taxpayer-funded pension that exceeds his annual presidential salary, according to a new analysis describing the potential payout as “historically unusual” due to his long career in Washington.
A report by the National Taxpayer Union Foundation estimates that Biden could receive up to $417,000 annually in retirement benefits, higher than the $400,000 salary he earned as president and potentially more than any former commander-in-chief before him.
Long Washington career drives unusually large pension estimate
The unusually high estimate stems from Biden’s decades of service in federal government, which began in the early 1970s and spanned more than five decades across multiple branches of government.
Biden first entered national politics in 1972, when he was elected as a US senator from Delaware. He served 36 years in the Senate, followed by eight years as vice president under former President Barack Obama, before winning the presidency himself.
Because of this extensive service, Biden may qualify for retirement benefits from multiple federal programs, a rare overlap that significantly boosts the estimated total.
“It’s pretty unusual, historically unusual, to have such a large pension amount,” Demian Brady, president of the National Taxpayer Union Foundation, told the New York Post while discussing the findings.
Breakdown of potential retirement benefits
According to Brady, Biden could receive benefits under the Former Presidents Act of 1958, which grants former presidents an annual pension equal to the salary of Cabinet secretaries. That amount is currently set at $250,600 per year.
On top of that, Biden may also qualify for retirement payments through the Civil Service Retirement System for his years as senator and vice president. Those benefits could total up to $166,374 annually, the report estimates.
Combined, the two streams could push Biden’s total annual pension to approximately $417,000, funded entirely by taxpayers.
While former presidents routinely receive pensions and post-office benefits, experts say it is rare for those benefits to stack alongside long-term congressional and executive branch retirement programs in this way.
Uncertainty remains over whether Biden will collect full amount
Despite the eye-catching estimate, it remains unclear whether Biden will ultimately collect the full amount outlined in the report.
A spokesperson for Biden did not immediately respond to a request for comment on whether he intends to draw from all available retirement programs. The National Taxpayer Union Foundation also did not respond to a separate inquiry from Fox News Digital.
During his presidency, Biden earned $400,000 per year, a salary that has remained unchanged for US presidents since 2001.
Renewed push in Congress to cap presidential pensions
The report comes amid renewed efforts in Congress to limit how much former presidents can receive after leaving office.
In 2025, Sen. Joni Ernst, a Republican from Iowa, reintroduced the Presidential Allowance Modernization Act, which would cap presidential pensions at $200,000 annually. The bill has been referred to the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee.
Similar attempts to rein in presidential benefits have failed in the past. In 2016, Congress passed legislation aimed at reducing post-presidency allowances, but then-President Barack Obama vetoed the bill just before leaving office.
