In Spain, to retire and access the contributory retirement pensionSocial Security requires compliance with the ordinary legal retirement age, as well as having at least 15 years of contributions, of which at least two are within the last 15 years. Even so, the public pension system is so dynamic and flexible that it allows this age to be advanced depending on the situation of each worker, which is why many wonder if they can retire at exactly 65 years of age with a minimum of 15 years of contributions.
The answer is found both in the General Social Security Law and in the Law 27/2011which includes the requirements to retire both regularly and early. This rule, which began to operate in 2013, establishes that the retirement age will increase while the contributions necessary to retire at 65 will increase. This transition will end in 2027, when the ordinary retirement age will be 67 years, except for those who have at least 38 years and 6 months of contributions, in which case they will be able to retire at 65 years.
Can I retire at age 65 if I have contributed to Social Security for 15 years?
Under normal conditions, no. Article 205 of the General Social Security Law, as well as the Twentieth Transitional Provision of Law 27/2011, establish that, to retire ordinarily in 2026, it is necessary to be 66 years and 10 months of age and to have contributed at least 15 years to Social Security, of which at least two must be within the last 15 years (what is known as a specific deficiency). If you want to retire at age 65, you will need to have been contributing at least 38 years and 3 months.
Now, it is true that Social Security allows the ordinary retirement age to be advanced through voluntary and involuntary early retirement, but in this case it would not be possible with only 15 years of contributions. The reason is that, for voluntary retirement (it allows a maximum advance of 24 months with respect to the ordinary age), it requires having at least 35 years of contributions. In the case of involuntary retirement (advancing the age up to 48 months compared to the ordinary age), it is required to have a minimum of 33 years of contributions.
Knowing this, with 65 years and 15 years of contributions it will not be possible to retire through a contributory pension, so you will have to be 66 years and 10 months old (valid for 2026). Now, the Social Security system is flexible and allows access to this age, but only in specific cases, such as people with a recognized disability equal to or greater than 45% or 65%, the retirement age could be advanced under certain conditions.
Retire at age 65 and with 15 years of contributions through Passive Classes
For civil servants assigned to the Passive Classes Regime, the forced retirement age is usually 65 years and the minimum contribution period required is, effectively, 15 years of service to the State to be entitled to a pension. However, to benefit from voluntary early retirement (from the age of 60), this regime requires having at least 30 years of service accredited, so with 15 years the retirement could not be brought forward before the regulatory age of your body.
Early retirement due to disability with 65 years of age and 15 years of contributions
Social Security allows workers who have a recognized disability equal to or greater than 45% to retire early, being able to advance their age to 56 years, as long as they have 15 years of contributions, of which at least 5 years must have been with the recognized disability (it is included in ANNEX I of Royal Decree Royal Decree 370/2023). In this situation it would be possible to retire at 65 with 15 years of contributions.
Similarly, early retirement for workers with a disability of 65% or greater allows the application of reducing coefficients to reduce the ordinary age to 52 years.