Retirement

[Danik 2016]

As in Brazil the retirement laws are changing, mainly the age of retirement and the years you have to contribute to the system it would be interesting to know how those laws work in other countries.
For example:
As in Brazil the system of government is centralized, all the states have to obey the federal laws. How is that in your country/state (if the government is decentralized).
What is the age of retirement in your country/state?
Are there professional categories in your country/state with special retirement rules?

Obs. In conformity to the rules of this forum this is to be mainly a technical discussion.

[OrphanPip]

In Canada the age of retirement is 65, there is a national pension program administered by the federal government in every province and territory except Quebec. Quebec has a separately managed pension fund though there are agreements between the province and the federal government so that pension payments are transferable if you move to another province. The previous Conservative government raised the retirement age to 67 but it's not yet in effect. The recently elected Liberals have pledged to reverse that change though.

[YesNo]

In the US retirement for me would be when I am 66. I could retire early or as late as 70 (I think). Retirement means collecting "social security" benefits for which I would be taxed. There is also "medicare" which is a health insurance program. There is a free part and a part that costs money which would be taken out of my social security benefit check. There is some state-federal involvement that I don't understand.

I don't think that helped much.

[MANICHAEAN]

In the UK a man can retire at 65, but I chose to delay taking my state old age pension at 70, and am still working at 73 (next month)

[Danik 2016]

Thanks for your posts, Orphan Pip, Yes/No and MANICHEAN.
In some countries the official retirement age seems to be 65. In Brazil until a short time ago it was 60 for women and 65 for men. But now they sum up the working years with the contribution years progressively.
We have the social medicare which is free and the privat medicare which becomes very expensive for people above 59.
Congrats for your youthful disposition, MANICHEAN!If one likes the job one does, retirement before the time can be very boring, unless you replace work with other fulfilling activities.

[Dreamwoven]

I retired in 2005 at the age of 63. I knew that with a wonky ticker I would have to retire young, and so I planned my future contributions to cover the extra cost. I didn't renew my British passport as it would have meant going to Stockholm to the British Embassy before it ran out in 2011. But with permanent residence in Sweden my pension and residence are secured.

[Danik 2016]

Interesting, DW. But I hope your identity papers (with nationality) are ok. With so much going on in Europe and elsewhere it is good if one has secured that too.

[spikepipsqueak]

In Australia it used to be 60 for women, 65 for men, like Brazil. Then they brought in a sliding scale which will eventually make the sexes the same.

According to my superannuation (privately funded retirement) I could have retired at 55. According to the gov't I will receive a pension at 62.5. This is under Federal control.

Good health care is pretty much free for everyone here, though conservative gov'ts keep trying to change that.

I will never understand raising the retirement age when there are young people unable to earn a living honourably. I understand conserving knowledge but not the failure to train the next generation to take over.

[Danik 2016]

I think that the whole system is failing and that in several countries, spike. In former times (not so long ago) people got to school and then got a job. There was a certain job stability and so people were able to pay the compulsory % of the retirement fund. Now people are jobless and even so there is a great pressure to changing retiment and other worker rights because there is not enough money.It is worst for the young ones because they are without perspective.
The public health care here is also failing and private health care is too expensive for those over 59.
I hope everything goes well with your retirement.

[spikepipsqueak]

I'm not worried for myself, Danik, I can live on the smell of an oily rag. I worry for subsequent generations who seem to be toiling for little reward while the 1% rake their percentage off the top. And for the political upheaval I see in our future when the whole thing self corrects.

[Danik 2016]

I guess there will be radical changes in the next decades. Let´s hope they will be for the better.

[Dreamwoven]

Interesting, DW. But I hope your identity papers (with nationality) are ok. With so much going on in Europe and elsewhere it is good if one has secured that too.

This is a good point, Danik. My Swedish driving licence expired, so now I just have my Swedish pension, which I boosted to take account of my early retirement. The most important identity in Sweden is one's "personal number" which just needs to be read out to the hospital, health centre, etc. Without your personnummer, which you get with your Permanent Residence Status you have no status in Sweden. I jointly own the house with my wife and where we both live.

[Danik 2016]

If you have a double nationality, I think you were born in UK, it might be good to have some English papers too, DW. One never knows how they might be useful.

[Dreamwoven]

I don't have double nationality, though I was born in the UK, but circumstances have made the UK part of my past history. I regret not having kept up my knowledge of Swedish, unfortunately we speak English at home, as do our sons when they visit us. My Swedish was good when I retired, but has deteriorated since then.

[Danik 2016]

If you are oficially a Swedish citizen with Swedish children and Swedish pension that should be ok, I think. Anyway, more than one nationality sometimes can be very useful.

[Dreamwoven]

But I am not a Swedish citizen, I don't have Swedish citizenship, "just" permanent residence "permanent uppehållstillstånd" (PUT for short).

[Danik 2016]

Well, I would regularize my citizen papers if I were you, as the coutries, specially in Europe, are becoming very squeamish about the issue. It is probably only a matter of getting some papers.

[Dreamwoven]

My health limits me in doing nothing about my citizen papers, I don't travel abroad any more. I can't even go to the British Embassy in Stockholm to get a new passport. Just the journey is too much. Thats just the way it is, and has been for a long time.

[Danik 2016]

I see. Forget about it. I don´t want you to worry about it without need.