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The notion of retirement is slowly slipping away for millions of workers struggling to make ends meet.
Everyone looks forward to when their time is their own, but saving enough money to throw off the shackles of work proves to be a tough challenge for many.
That’s why retirement is more of a phased activity now than years ago when your 65th birthday signalled giving up work.
To find out which countries have the lowest and highest retirement ages, we looked at the latest official data from almost 100 countries.
In many countries, the retirement ages for women tend to be lower than for men.
But governments are closing the gap by equalising retirement ages for men and women.
Table of contents
Lowest Retirement Ages for Women
It can’t be a coincidence that countries with or which have had a socialist regime tend to have the lowest state retirement ages for women.
In China, the retirement age averages 54 but can fall between a 50th and 55th birthday. Thus, the retirement age is the lowest retirement age we could find in the world.
Other countries where women can clock off at 55 years old are Iran, North Korea, Uzbekistan, Venezuela and Vietnam.
Perhaps only Vietnam is a reasonable retirement destination out of these.
Countries with a retirement age of lower than 60 years old for women
| Country | Age |
| China | 50-55 |
| Iran | 55.00 |
| North Korea | 55.00 |
| Uzbekistan | 55.00 |
| Venezuela | 55.00 |
| Vietnam | 55.00 |
| Russia | 56.50 |
| Colombia | 57.00 |
| Turkmenistan | 57.00 |
| Belarus | 57.50 |
| Kazakhstan | 58.00 |
| Kyrgyzstan | 58.00 |
| Tajikistan | 58.00 |
| Turkey | 58.00 |
| Czech Republic | 58-62 |
| Moldova | 59.50 |
Lowest Retirement Ages for Men
Men tend to have a longer working life in most countries.
Only four have a state retirement age that is less than 60 years old.
Sri Lanka leads the way with a retirement age of 55, but that’s still well-beaten by the womens’ retirement age of 50 to 55 in China.
Countries with a retirement age of lower than 60 years old for men
| Country | Age |
| Sri Lanka | 55.00 |
| Indonesia | 58.00 |
| Nepal | 58.00 |
| Bangladesh | 59.00 |
Highest Retirement Ages for Women
These are the highest retirement ages for women, although many countries are moving the age upwards.
During the transition period, a woman’s retirement age depends on her date of birth and may be higher in some countries than those listed below, i.e. 66 for women in the UK.
| Country | Age |
| Switzerland | 64.00 |
| Brazil | 62.00 |
| Israel | 62.00 |
| North Macedonia | 62.00 |
| Lithuania | 61.33 |
| Croatia | 61.25 |
| Bulgaria | 61.17 |
| Albania | 61.00 |
| Romania | 61.00 |
Highest Retirement Agesfor Men
Some European countries have lifted the state retirement age for men above 66 years old already.
Many nations are considering the rise for future generations, but few have made a move.
The oldest current retirement age for men is in The Netherlands – 68 years old.
| Country | Age |
| Netherlands | 68.00 |
| Israel | 67.00 |
| Greece | 67.00 |
| Iceland | 67.00 |
| Italy | 67.00 |
| Norway | 67.00 |
| Portugal | 66.33 |
| Australia | 66.00 |
| Ireland | 66.00 |
| Taiwan | 66.00 |
| United Kingdom | 66.00 |
Retirement Ages For Men And Women
This table offers a deeper dive into retirement age data from 92 countries.
| Country | Men | Women |
| Albania | 65 | 61 |
| Argentina | 65 | 60 |
| Armenia | 63 | |
| Australia | 66 | |
| Austria | 65 | 60 |
| Azerbaijan | 62 | 60 |
| Belarus | 62.5 | 57.5 |
| Bangladesh | 59 | |
| Belgium | 65 | |
| Bosnia and Herzegovina | 65 | |
| Brazil | 65 | 62 |
| British Virgin Islands | 65 | |
| Bulgaria | 64.08 | 61.17 |
| Cameroon | 60 | |
| Canada | 65 | |
| Chile | 65 | 60 |
| China | 60 | 50–55 |
| Colombia | 62 | 57 |
| Croatia | 65 | 61.25 |
| Cuba | 65 | 60 |
| Cyprus | 65 | |
| Czech Republic | 62.83 | 58-62 |
| Denmark | 65 | |
| Egypt | 60 | |
| Estonia | 63 | |
| Finland | 63–68 | |
| France | 62-67 | |
| Georgia | 65 | 60 |
| Germany | 65.58 | |
| Greece | 67 | |
| Hungary | 63 | |
| Iceland | 67 | |
| India | 60-65 | |
| Indonesia | 58 | |
| Iran | 60 | 55 |
| Ireland | 66 | |
| Israel | 67 | 62 |
| Italy | 67 | |
| Japan | 60 | |
| Kazakhstan | 63 | 58 |
| South Korea | 60 | |
| Kyrgyzstan | 63 | 58 |
| Latvia | 63.25 | |
| Libya | 65 | 60 |
| Liechtenstein | 64 | |
| Lithuania | 63.17 | 61.33 |
| Luxembourg | 65 | |
| Malaysia | 60 | |
| Malta | 62 | |
| Mexico | 65 | |
| Moldova | 63 | 59.5 |
| Montenegro | 65 | 60 |
| Morocco | 65 | |
| Namibia | 60 | |
| Nepal | 58 | |
| Netherlands | 68 | |
| New Zealand | 65 | |
| North Korea | 60 | 55 |
| North Macedonia | 64 | 62 |
| Norway | 67 | |
| Oman | 65 | |
| Pakistan | 60 | |
| Peru | 60 | |
| Philippines | 60 | |
| Poland | 65 | 60 |
| Portugal | 66.33 | |
| Romania | 65 | 61 |
| Russia | 61.5 | 56.5 |
| Saudi Arabia | 60 | |
| Serbia | 65 | 60 |
| Singapore | 62–65 | |
| Slovakia | 62 | |
| Slovenia | 64.33 | |
| Spain | 65.25 | |
| Sri Lanka | 55 | |
| Sweden | 65 | |
| Switzerland | 65 | 64 |
| Taiwan | 66 | |
| Tajikistan | 63 | 58 |
| Thailand | 60 | |
| Trinidad and Tobago | 60–65 | |
| Tunisia | 62-65 | |
| Turkmenistan | 62 | 57 |
| Turkey | 60 | 58 |
| Ukraine | 60 | |
| United Arab Emirates | 65 | |
| United Kingdom | 66 | |
| United States | 62-67 | |
| Uruguay | 60 | 60 |
| Uzbekistan | 60 | 55 |
| Venezuela | 60 | 55 |
| Vietnam | 60 | 55 |
Pension Related Guide
Make sure to check out these guides to understand your pension option as an expat:
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Needs updating uk is 67 for woman and talk of it going up.If you put info on the web it should be upto date
Your statistics on the retirement age in France are wrong. The retirement age there is 62.
Presently in France there are massive demonstrations by the people who are trying to oppose Macron’s government’s proposal to raise the retirement age to 64.
I see no reirement ages in the future. Though try finding companies that will employ them. In the UK ageism is absolutely rife. I have experiened it first hand clearly and disgustingly blatantly.