Press releases

The assets of the Finnish earnings-related pension system shrunk in 2022 – investment losses accounted for 14.8 billion euros. Since the dependency ratio is getting increasingly weaker over time as the population ages, improving investment returns is essential. The options include, among others, adjusting the risk level of private sector pension investments by relaxing the related regulations.

The average nominal return of the pension funds included in our comparison was more than eight per cent in the negative in 2022. The real return is even weaker since inflation pushed losses deeper in the red in all countries. The average real return was nearly –15 per cent. However, Finnish earnings-related pension investors performed above average.

The total pension expenditure in 2022 was 35 billion euros. Every third person in Finland who has turned 16 years received a pension.

The number of new disability pensions granted due to musculoskeletal diseases grew by nearly 10 per cent in 2022. A growing share of new pensioners on a disability pension are 60 years or over.

In 2022, Finns retired on an earnings-related pension a couple of months earlier than in 2021. The average effective retirement age was 62.2 years. The dip was due to the large amount of new pensioners on an old-age pension.

A recent study by the Finnish Centre for Pensions shows that retirement has been deferred clearly, particularly in the private sector. Working after age 63 has also increased significantly, again particularly in the private sector. The gradual increase of the retirement age was agreed on in connection with the 2017 pension reform.  The new study …

The number of pension claims soared at the end of 2022 as tens of thousands of Finns claimed the partial old-age pension. Exceptionally, the increase in the earnings-related pension index was clearly higher than the increase in the wage coefficient. It encouraged people to claim the pension already in 2022.

The average disposable income of pensioners in 2020 was 27,000 euros. Pensioners’ income level relative to the employed population is 77 per cent. The ratio has remained virtually the same over the last decades. Single, particularly under-55-year-olds, have a smaller-than-average income.

When starting working as a self-employed person, the confirmed income for insurance under the Self-employed Persons’ Pensions Act (YEL) can be estimated using the calculator on Tyoelake.fi. The calculator as part of the instructions on confirmed income is also a useful tool when guiding self-employed people. The calculator is open to all and requires no login. It is available in English, Finnish and Swedish.

The forthcoming reform of the Self-employed Persons’ Pensions Act (YEL) has caused fierce debate among the self-employed, particularly on social media.