Social Security will raise the voluntary early retirement age again in 2027, but knowing that it will be the last increase, since this is established by the first pension reform regulated under Law 27/2011. Thus, the age for voluntary early retirement will be 65 years, which is two months compared to 2026, but opening up the possibility of continuing to retire early at 63 years for those workers who have at least 38 years and six months of contributions throughout their working life.
Voluntary early retirement is regulated in article 208 of the General Law of Social Security. This modality allows the retirement age to be advanced by a maximum of 24 months (two years), but in exchange it requires compliance with a series of requirements, among which stands out having a minimum of 35 years of contributions throughout one’s working life. The reason why this age changes year after year is because it is established by the Law 27/2011the first pension reform, which was launched in 2013.
Anton Díez, finance expert, speaks clearly about pensions: “Those who are turning 67 have worked with very good salaries and that adds up to a 40% additional cost”
Social Security penalizes the pension of those who decide to retire early, but this cut will not affect their spouse’s future widow’s pension.
Until that moment, there was only one ordinary retirement age, which was set at 65 years, but from that date this “duality” of ages came into force, which depends on the years of contributions that are accredited. The objective was none other than to guarantee the sustainability of the public pension system in the face of increased life expectancy and the arrival of the baby boom generation (born between 1957 and 1977).
In this way, just as the ordinary age grows, so does the anticipated age, whether voluntary or involuntary. In 2027, when the ordinary age is definitively set at 67 years, the voluntary early age will also be 65 years for those workers who do not prove a long contribution career.
Voluntary early retirement age in 2026
In 2026 the minimum age will be set at 64 years and 10 months, but for those who prove 38 years and 3 months or more, the minimum age is 63 years. In 2027, it will rise and reach 67 years.
| Year | Quoted periods | Retirement age |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 38 years and 3 months or more | 63 years |
| Less than 38 years and 3 months | 64 years and 8 months | |
| 2026 | 38 years and 3 months or more | 63 years |
| Less than 38 years and 3 months | 64 years and 10 months | |
| From 2027 | 38 years and 6 months or more | 63 years |
| Less than 38 years and 6 months | 65 years |
It must be kept in mind that voluntary early retirement is not “free”, that is, Social Security will apply some reducing coefficients in the form of a percentage of the final amount of the pension and which can reach up to 21%. The percentage will depend on the total years of contributions and the months ahead of the ordinary age.
Voluntary early retirement age based on age of birth
With our age of birth and the total number of years of contributions we can determine the year in which we will be able to access voluntary early retirement. This data can be consulted in the following table:
| Year of birth | Voluntary early retirement date (with 38 years and six months or more of contributions) | Voluntary early retirement date (with less than 38 years and six months of contributions) |
|---|---|---|
| 1962 | 2025 | 2027 |
| 1963 | 2026 | 2028 |
| 1964 | 2027 | 2029 |
| 1965 | 2028 | 2030 |
| 1966 | 2029 | 2031 |
| 1967 | 2030 | 2032 |
| 1968 | 2031 | 2033 |
| 1969 | 2032 | 2034 |
| 1970 | 2033 | 2035 |
| 1971 | 2034 | 2036 |
| 1972 | 2035 | 2037 |
In this way, those born in 1962 and 1963 can access voluntary early retirement if they prove those minimum years of contributions, while those born after 1964 must wait until 2027 and following, when the minimum age will be definitively set at 63 or 65 years depending on the years of contributions. In this sense, saying that Social Security has on its website a autocalculation simulator with which to know how much we will have left in our pension.