Old-age pension

You can retire on old-age pension at the earliest from the beginning of the month following your minimum retirement age.

Minimum retirement age: Your minimum retirement age indicates the earliest possible time when you can retire on old-age pension. Your minimum retirement age depends on your year of birth. If you were born in 1964 or earlier, your minimum retirement age has already been confirmed. The retirement ages of younger people are forecasts.

Maximum retirement age: The maximum retirement age refers to the age at which pension accrual ends, even if you continue to work.

Use the pension calculator to determine your retirement age

In our online service, you can calculate an estimate of your old-age pension in advance. Once you have applied for pension, it is no longer possible to calculate an estimate. The longer you work, the higher your pension will be.

Increase for late retirement: If you retire after your minimum old-age pension age, the increase for late retirement increases your pension amount by 0.4% for every month of deferred retirement.

Calculate your pension estimate in Varma Online Service

Agree on terminating your employment relationship with your employer well in advance. Your employment relationship must end before your pension begins.  You do not need to attach your letter of resignation to your application.

• Self-employed persons can continue their entrepreneurial activities during retirement, but their YEL insurance ends when they retire. 
• Pension may be granted to persons who have reached the maximum retirement age even if the employment relationship continues.

You can start a new employment relationship on old-age pension. Read more about working while on an old-age pension.

Apply for pension two weeks the desired start date of pension. Before completion, you can browse the online application and check what information you will need.

• To complete the pension application through the online service, log in to the service. Select "Pension applications" in the navigation area on the left-hand side of the online service and then select old-age pension as the type.
• Find out your IBAN account number, information on other benefits or pensions and information on other benefits or daily allowances for the current and previous year for the application in advance.
• If you have also worked for a public sector employer (e.g. a municipality or state), indicate in the application whether you are also applying for the pension accrued from it at the same time.
• The same form can be used to apply for both earnings-related and national pension. Read more about applying for national pension.
• When you choose online service on your application, you will receive your decision in your electronic archive.
• You can track the progress of the processing in Varma Online Service.

Apply for pension by logging in to Varma Online Service

You can apply for pension for work carried out in EU and EEA member states, Switzerland, the UK and social security agreement countries with the same application that you use for applying for pension for work carried out in Finland.

If you have lived or worked abroad, please also fill in Appendix U, "Residence and Employment Abroad", in the online service. The appendix must be completed even if you are not yet applying for pension for work carried out abroad. The information in Appendix U is used in determining the impact of your stay abroad on your earnings-related pension and national pension. Read more about applying for pension for work carried out abroad.

Provisional decision: You will usually receive a provisional decision on your application. A provisional decision is issued before all the information that affects the amount of your pension is known; for instance, the amount of your final salary.

Final decision: The final pension decision takes into account all factors, such as the increase for deferred retirement, that affect the amount of your pension.

Along with the decision, you will receive instructions that include important matters for pensioners, as well as a reminder to apply for a new tax card for your pension as soon as possible after your pension begins. Read how to request a tax card for your pension.

You can see your decision in the online archive of the online service if you choose online service. Otherwise, the decision will be sent by post to your home address.