It is easy to check the retirement age using the pension calculator. The handy calculator tells you the retirement ages for your age group using your year and month of birth: the minimum retirement age, the target retirement age, and the maximum retirement age.
Calculate your retirement age with the pension calculator!
– The retirement age is determined by the year of birth. The retirement age has already been confirmed for people born in 1965 and before, but for people born after that, it is an estimate based on statistics and life expectancy projections, says Minna Kaartinen, Service Manager at Varma's Pension Services.
When can I retire?
The minimum retirement age refers to the earliest possible time of retirement. It applies to both self-employed persons and employees. You can retire on an old age pension when you have reached the minimum retirement age and your employment has ended. However, you do not have to retire even if you reach the minimum retirement age. Many people continue to work longer, which increases the amount of the pension they will receive.
According to Kaartinen, reaching the minimum retirement age does not automatically mean that an employee will retire, on the contrary: there may be many more active years of work ahead if the employee so wishes.
– The retirement age is flexible to suit people's individual circumstances. Many people want to continue working even when they reach the retirement age, says Kaartinen.
Even before reaching the minimum retirement age, you can reduce your workload by opting for a partial old-age pension.
The minimum retirement age rises gradually
According to Kaartinen, there is no need to pay particular attention to the retirement age. The retirement age is increased gradually, and it is good to be aware that when life expectancy rises, this will also affect retirement ages. If you take care of yourself, you can keep going at work and live a healthy life.
– The same trend can be seen across Europe. People live longer, and many people in their 70s lead quite active lives these days. A working 70-year-old could well be the new normal in the future, says Kaartinen.
Retiring later pays off
The longer you continue to work, the greater your pension will be. Your pension is increased by a deferment increase of 0.4% for each month that you postpone retirement beyond your minimum retirement age. Postponing retirement by a year, for example, gives you a 4.8% deferment increase.
As average life expectancy continues to increase and the pension pot needs to last longer, the life expectancy coefficient cuts the amount of the monthly pension. The final life expectancy coefficient is determined for each age group at age 62. When you finally retire, the amount of your pension is multiplied by the life expectancy coefficient of your age group, which reduces the monthly pension you will receive.
The target retirement age is the age at which the reduction in pension caused by the life expectancy coefficient is roughly equal to the increase caused by the deferral increase.
The maximum retirement age
In addition to the minimum retirement age, each age group is assigned a maximum retirement age, at which the pension accrual stops. At this point, employment also automatically ends. You can continue to work after this date by separate agreement, even if you no longer accrue any pension.
How much pension will I get?
The amount of your pension depends on your earnings and number of working years. An employee's pension accrues from the earnings paid for work and an entrepreneur's pension from his or her confirmed YEL income. Certain social benefits, such as parental allowance or unemployment allowance paid by an unemployment fund, also accrue pension, as do studies leading to a degree.
You can monitor the accrual of your earnings-related pension in the pension record.
Pension accrues as follows:
- 1.5% per year for those aged 17-52 and from age 63 onwards
- 1.7% per year for those aged 53-62 (until the end of 2025)
It's a good idea to review your pension amount from time to time to keep track of your pension accumulation. With the pension calculator in Varma Online Service, you can see how the amount of your pension will change if, for example, your salary changes or if you postpone retirement.
– It's good to be aware of your pension accumulation, because you can also control it to a certain extent. For many people, it can be a surprise what the amount looks like, says Kaartinen.
It is important to always check the employment history, earnings and social benefits affecting your pension in your pension record, as the amount of your pension will eventually be calculated on the basis of this information. If there are any errors or missing information in the pension record, you should report them to your pension insurance company.
The retirement age and the pension accrual for self-employed persons
The retirement age of a self-employed person is determined in exactly the same way as that of an employed person. You can retire at any time after the minimum retirement age. Unlike an employee, self-employment does not have to end for an old-age pension to start.
While an employee's pension accrues from the salary, an entrepreneur's pension accrues from his or her confirmed YEL income. If a self-employed person wishes to extend his or her working life, he or she will accumulate an additional pension in the same way as an employed person. In addition to the old age pension, self-employed persons can take out voluntary YEL insurance and accumulate an additional pension in this way.