One in five people in the Netherlands is retired, but not all are over 65

Monday 02 July 2012

More than three million people in the Netherlands are retired, meaning that almost one in five of the population has officially ended their working life, according to new figures from the national statistics office.

However, 15% of people who stopped work last year was aged between 55 and 65 - below the official retirement age. Five years ago, nearly one in five retirees were below the state pension age, showing efforts to keep people at work longer by cutting back on early retirement schemes are paying off.

Nevertheless, the average retirement age is still 63, the CBS figures show.

The government intends to increase the state pension age from 65 to 67 as part of a package of measures to cut the budget deficit and keep pensions affordable.

The Financieele Dagblad calculates that there are now 2.3 people in work for every pensioner, compared with 2.7 in 2001. This illustrates the urgency of increasing the pension age, the paper says.

Do you plan to retire early or have you already done so? Have your say in the comments box below.

© DutchNews.nl