Denmark has officially set the highest retirement age among major global economies by raising it to 70 years for both men and women.
This move is part of a sweeping pension reform aimed at ensuring the sustainability of the country’s social welfare system amid an aging population. In addition to Denmark, 14 other countries within the EU and G20 are also in the process of raising retirement ages — with a third of them focusing specifically on women in a bid to achieve gender equality.
In most countries reviewed by RIA Novosti, the standard retirement age is 65 for both sexes. However, some nations have already pushed the threshold higher: in Australia, Greece, and the Netherlands, it now stands at 67.
There are also countries with lower retirement ages: in Sweden, retirement starts at 63, while in France and Slovakia, it begins at 64. In India, the baseline retirement age is 60, though it varies by profession and region.
In many parts of the world, retirement age is equal for men and women, but notable exceptions remain. For instance, in Turkey, men retire at 60 and women at 58; in Poland, the split is 65 and 60 respectively. A similar gender gap is observed in several Latin American countries.
Among the countries where retirement age is still on the rise are Belgium, Germany, Spain, and Slovenia, where the target is 67. In Indonesia, Latvia (already this year), and Lithuania, the age will increase to 65. China maintains a differentiated system: men retire at 63, while women retire at 55 to 58, depending on their profession.
Some countries are focusing exclusively on raising the retirement age for women to achieve parity with men. These include Austria, Romania, Croatia, and Switzerland, where the retirement age is set to reach 65. Bulgaria is also working toward aligning the retirement age for both sexes at the same level.
