Almost half of all Romanians who retired in the last year did not wait to reach the standard retirement age. Thus, the real age at which women in our country retire is 59 years and 2 months, while for men the age is 60 years and 9 months, 4 years and 5 years respectively earlier than the standard retirement age, according to data obtained by Economedia from the National House for Public Pensions (CNPP). This is possible because the law in our country allows for several types of early retirement and there are also several situations where even the standard retirement age can be reduced by a few years.
A total of 251,273 people actually retired last year with pension rights due and established in 2020. The average effective retirement age was 60 years and 9 months for men, and for women, the age is 59 years and 2 months, according to data submitted by the CNPP. This statistic includes all pension categories: old age, early or partial retirement, and early and invalidity retirement.
The standard retirement age in Romania, according to the law on the unitary public pension system, is 65 years for men. Women, on the other hand, can retire if they are past the age of 61, even if the standard age is 63, as this will be gradually become mandatory by 2030. The minimum contribution period is 15 years and the full contribution period is 35 years for both women and men.
Of the more than 250,000 Romanians who retired last year, only half did so because they reached the standard retirement age. Thus, the number of beneficiaries of old-age pensions, i.e. those who have reached the standard age, amounts to 151,380 (86,300 men and 65,080 women). Everyone else retired before reaching the standard retirement age.
The number of retirees, by pension category, who have opted for their pension rights before reaching the standard retirement age is as follows:
Old-age pension (a reduction in the standard retirement age may be granted to those who have worked in difficult conditions in proportion to the period worked under such conditions):
– Men: 43,370
– Women: 15,371
Early retirement:
– Men: 2,295
– Women: 3,839
Partial early retirement:
– Men: 16,146
– Women: 16,178.
Translated by: O.H.