Effective retirement age dipped as expected
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.
According to statistics compiled by the Finnish Centre for Pensions, the effective retirement age dipped as expected. In 2022, the expected effective retirement age was 62.2 years, a drop of two tenths since 2021. The dip was particularly due to the growing number of new pensioners on an old-age pension.
Before 2022, a significantly smaller number of persons retired on an old-age pension compared to before the 2017 pension reform. As the number of new pensioners on a disability pension has also been smaller in recent years than earlier, the average effective retirement age has risen sharply.
“In 2022, the number of new pensioners was considerably larger than in recent years, which made the expected effective retirement age dip. However, we have reason to expect the dip to be temporary and the effective retirement age to return to its upward trajectory. One of the main reasons behind the large number of new pensioners on an old-age pension in 2022 was the retirement rush at the end of the year due to the exceptional index development”, says Development Manager Jari Kannisto (Finnish Centre for Pensions).
10,000 more new pensioners than in 2021
In 2022, around 71,500 persons retired on an earnings-related pension. This was an increase of 10,000 compared to in 2021. Most of them, around 54,000 persons, retired on a full old-age pension.
The number of new pensioners on a disability pension rose slightly after the first two years of the corona pandemic. New disability pensions were granted to 18,000 persons, an increase of around two per cent compared to 2021.
A record-high number of persons took out a partial old-age pension. However, they are not included in the figures of new pensioners.
“The number of persons taking out a partial old-age pension exploded last year. A total of 35,000 Finns took out this benefit due to the exceptional index development. This was 2.5 times the regular number of new pensioners on a partial old-age pension”, Kannisto explains.
Gender gap
In 2022, the expected effective retirement age for 25-year-old men and women was 62.6 years and 61.9 years respectively. Traditionally, the gender gap of the effective retirement age has been narrow, but in the last few years, it has widened to 0.7 years as the expected effective retirement age for men is higher.
“Particularly at the onset of their working lives, women have a higher risk of disability than men, which lowers their average effective retirement age”, Kannisto states.
In addition, the effective retirement age is slightly lower for women in the public sector compared to in the private sector.
Expected effective retirement age develops as planned
The expected effective retirement age is a key pension policy indicator. By 2025, it is to rise to at least 62.4 years. The goal was agreed on in negotiations between the Finnish Government and the labour market organisations in 2009 and has been confirmed in several Government Programmes.
Table: Expected effective retirement age for 25-year-olds in 2002–2022
Abolishing the unemployment pension and the reduced number of starting disability pensions have raised the effective retirement age. Raising the retirement age has also raised the effective retirement age, and will continue to do so.
Retirement age will rise in next few years
- The retirement age rises by three months per age cohort.
- In 2023, those born in 1959 will reach their retirement age (64 yrs 3 mos).
- In 2027, those born in 1962 will reach their retirement age (65 yrs).
| Year of birth | Retirement age | The oldest in the age group can retire in |
|---|---|---|
| 1957 | 63 yrs 9 mos | 2020 |
| 1958 | 64 yrs | 2022 |
| 1959 | 64 yrs 3 mos | 2023 |
| 1960 | 64 yrs 6 mos | 2024 |
| 1961 | 64 yrs 9 mos | 2025 |
| 1962 | 65 yrs | 2027 |
Expected effective retirement age calculated as the life expectancy coefficient
The expected effective retirement age
- measures the development of retirement in the earnings-related pension system,
- depicts the average retirement age if the retirement contingencies and the mortality rates remain on the level of the review year, and
- is independent of the demographic age structure and calculated following the same principle as when calculating the expected life expectancy that measures the life span.
Read more
Effective Retirement Age
Earnings-related Pension Recipients in Finland (OSF)
Finnish Centre for Pension’s Customer Service
Read more elsewhere
Old-age pension: Birth year determines retirement age (tyoelake.fi)
Pension calculator (tyoelake.fi)
