Germany Pension Commission recommends linking retirement age to life expectancy

The German Pension Commission has recommended linking the statutory retirement age to life expectancy, a move that could first impact those born in 1965 starting in 2032. Under current law, the retirement age for the 1965 cohort remains 67. However, the commission proposes a formula where increases in life expectancy would lead to a gradual rise in the working age.

Specifically, the proposal suggests that for every one-year increase in average life expectancy, the working phase should increase by eight months and the pension period by four months. The commission's report also discusses the potential abolition of the pension without deductions for those with 45 years of insurance, though a specific starting year for this change has not yet been identified.

These measures are currently recommendations rather than law. The German government intends to move the reform package into the legislative process quickly, with the goal of completing the process by the end of 2026. Until new laws are passed and enacted, existing retirement age regulations remain in effect.