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People in Spain are retiring later than ever before, with the country’s average effective retirement age now reaching 65.5 years for the first time.

 

New figures released for May show the average retirement age has risen by more than a year since 2019 as more workers choose to stay in employment for longer.

 

The increase comes after years of pension reforms designed to encourage later retirement and reduce pressure on Spain’s growing pension bill. According to the latest data, the average retirement age is now edging closer to the official retirement age, which will rise to 66 years and 10 months this year.

 

The government began overhauling the pension system in 2021, gradually pushing the standard retirement age towards 67 by 2027 for those who have not paid enough years into the system. At the same time, incentives were introduced to make delayed retirement more attractive and early retirement less appealing financially.

 

The latest figures suggest those measures are starting to have a noticeable effect.

 

Of the 126,643 new retirement pensions registered in May, 12.3% involved people voluntarily delaying retirement. That’s almost 1.5% higher than last year and more than 7% above 2019 levels.

 

Around 69% of people who retired in May did so at the current legal retirement age of 66 years and 10 months.

 

At the same time, Spain’s pension spending has climbed to another all-time high. Social Security paid out €14.36 billion in contributory pensions in May alone, an increase of 6.1% compared to the same month last year.

 

Retirement pensions accounted for the biggest share of that spending at just over €10.5 billion. Payments for widow’s pensions reached €2.28 billion, while permanent disability benefits totalled €1.32 billion.

 

The average monthly pension across the entire Social Security system now stands at €1,370.70, up 4.6% year-on-year.

 

For retirement pensions specifically, the average payment has risen to €1,572 per month. Newly retired workers are receiving even more on average, with the latest available figures showing new pensions averaging €1,644.10 a month.

 

The latest increase already includes the 2026 pension rise approved by the government, which lifted pensions by 2.7% in line with inflation.

 

According to the figures, around 9.5 million people in Spain currently receive some form of state pension, covering more than 10.4 million individual payments. That includes retirement pensions, widow’s pensions, disability support and orphan benefits.

 

The data also showed more than 1.5 million pensions now include the supplement aimed at reducing the gender pension gap, with women making up almost three-quarters of recipients.

 

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