Retirement age in France should be pushed back to 67 and six months, report urges
It claims pensions deficit will be higher than anticipated due to low birth rate
The retirement age should be increased progressively, the report recommends
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France should progressively increase its retirement age to 67 and a half by 2070, a new report recommends.
The pensions advisory council (Conseil d'orientation des retraites, COR)* - an independent body which reports to the prime minister - made the recommendations in a document seen by French media. Its members are set to approve the report on Thursday (June 11).
The COR recommends raising the retirement age from the current 62-64 years to 64 years and four months in 2030, 65 years and eight months in 2045, and 67 years and six months in 2070.
Pensions were initially expected to make up around 1.4% of France’s GDP by 2070, but the report forecasts that this number will be closer to 2.4%
Last year, Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu announced a temporary pause on the controversial 2023 pension reform as part of the 2026 social security budget.
The reform, which increases the retirement age to 64, has been partially suspended until 2028.
The idea is that each candidate for the 2027 presidential election will provide a clear outline on their plans for the future of the reform, giving them a mandate to reinstate, expand, or even cancel the scheme.
Alternative proposals by the COR would see pension contributions from workers increased, or pension payouts reduced, but the retirement age remain the same.
These are less favourable however as they risk impacting household spending, negatively impacting France’s economy, and increasing labour costs.
Low birthrate
The gradual increase is needed due to a higher pension deficit than initially forecast, said the COR, particularly in several decades' time.
The deficit is exacerbated by a declining birth rate in France – from 1.8 children per woman to 1.45 – and keeping it at the current level would require the reducing number of workers to put more into the pot to cover expenses.
As a reminder, France’s pension system works in a wide, single pot format.
Workers pay into the system during their employment years, to cover the pensions of those currently retired.
When they get to retirement age, they take money out of the pot that is being replenished by the next generations in the workforce.
“If the fertility rate falls, it indicates that, overall, there will be fewer people in the workforce tomorrow, and if there are fewer people in the workforce tomorrow, there will be fewer contributors,” said economist at the Observatoire français des conjonctures économiques Éric Heyer to FranceInfo.
“Therefore the pension system would be much more unbalanced than anticipated.”
In comparison, the UK’s pension age will rise to 67 by 2028, as will Spain’s.
In Iceland, Greece, Italy, the Netherlands, Denmark, and Norway, the retirement age is already 67, and several countries are considering raising it further.
In the US, a person can retire as early as 62, but see a reduction in government payouts. They only receive their full pension if they retire at 67.
*The COR is made up of parliamentarians, representatives of professional organisations and trade unions, pensioners and families, members of the civil service, and experts. It was formed in 2000 to look into retirement issues in the medium and long term.
