Livsinkomster

Livsinkomster is a term used in economics and public policy to describe the stream of monetary resources a person is expected to receive over the course of their life. The concept is used to capture the total of earnings, transfers, and other recurring payments that occur from the start of working life through retirement, weighted by the probability of being alive at each age. In practice, livsinkomster is often distinguished from capital income, such as interest, dividends, or asset sales.

Definition and scope: Livsinkomster includes wage income during working years as well as social transfers and benefits tied to age, employment status, or family circumstances, such as unemployment benefits, disability benefits, child allowances, housing support, and pensions. It is typically analyzed in lifecycle or lifetime budget models to assess the resources available to an individual across different periods.

Calculation: The standard approach aggregates expected income across ages, multiplying the income at each age by the probability of surviving to that age, and, in some analyses, discounting future income to present value. The result depends on assumptions about earnings growth, benefit rules, mortality, and macroeconomic conditions.

Policy relevance: Livsinkomster is used to evaluate retirement adequacy, design replacement-rate targets, compare welfare systems, and inform personal financial planning. It helps illustrate how changes in age structure, labor markets, or policy can alter the total resources available over a lifetime.

See also: pension, lifetime earnings, replacement rate, social security.