Singapore raises retirement age to 64 by 2026

On March 4, Singapore's Minister of Manpower Tan See Leng announced that the country will increase the retirement age from 63 to 64 years old on July 1, 2026, and the re-employment age will also be raised from 68 to 69 years old.

Re-employment is the practice of re-engaging people who have reached retirement age but still want to continue working.

Speaking at a debate by the Committee on Supply in Singapore’s Parliament , Minister Tan See Leng said the increase in retirement age and re-employment was due to the country’s higher life expectancy. The change in retirement age could also help the government address manpower shortages.

Meanwhile, Minister of State for Manpower Gan Siow Huang noted that by 2023, on average, more than nine out of 10 veteran workers who were eligible and willing to continue working had been offered re-employment. She encouraged employers to plan ahead and consider adjusting their workforce plans and upskilling their workers to retain veteran employees. This is why the Singapore authorities are taking a gradual approach and announcing plans to increase the retirement age and re-employment age early.

Singapore last implemented a plan to raise the retirement and re-employment ages to 63 and 68 years old, respectively, in July 2022. The agreement to raise the retirement and re-employment ages in 2026 is part of the country’s roadmap to raise the retirement and re-employment ages to 65 and 70 years old, respectively, by 2030. This plan is in line with the recommendations of the Tripartite Working Group on Older Workers in 2019.

According to official statistics, as of June 2023, Singapore had nearly 20% of its citizens aged 65 or older. The country's total fertility rate fell to 0.97 last year, the first time in the Southeast Asian nation's history that it has fallen below 1.

Minh Hoa (according to People's Representative, Tin Tuc newspaper)

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