Overview
- The Alterssicherungskommission recommended on June 23, 2026, abolishing many no‑penalty early retirements and linking future retirement age to life expectancy with a two‑to‑one rule.
- The government has publicly said it will implement the commission's 33 recommendations but a draft law is not expected until after the parliamentary summer break and no changes are yet in force.
- Data show large numbers of Babyboomers already take pensions early: about 6 million drew old‑age pensions in 2024 and the 1957 cohort had roughly 53 percent entering before the statutory age.
- Policy changes have shifted incentives: the Hinzuverdienstgrenze was removed in January 2023 allowing unlimited additional earnings, and the 2026 Aktivrente lets pensioners keep up to €2,000 of monthly work income tax‑free, and researchers report rising shares who work in social‑security jobs after starting pensions.
- Means‑tested housing support has jumped as pressure on retiree incomes grows, with about 700,000 pensioners receiving Wohngeld at end‑2024 and total Wohngeld households near 1.2 million, and the Jobcenter moratorium on forced early‑retirement applications ends December 31, 2026.