pensionsFrance

SuspendedPhase-in shifted by one generation; set to resume in 2028 unless the law changes again

2023 pension reform: legal retirement age raised to 64

The law of 14 April 2023 gradually raises the legal retirement age from 62 to 64 and speeds up the increase in the required contribution period. The 2026 social security financing act shifted this phase-in by one generation for pensions starting from 1 September 2026.

Updated: October 31, 2026Next milestone: April 18, 2027 — Presidential election (first round, date set by the government)

At a glance

Reference text

Loi n° 2023-270 du 14 avril 2023 de financement rectificative de la sécurité sociale pour 2023 (Amending Social Security Financing Act for 2023)[1]

No. 2023-270 · April 14, 2023

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Carried by

  • Gouvernement Élisabeth Borne[3][1]Prime Minister (Première ministre) · 2023 · Initiator
  • Olivier Dussopt[1]Minister of Labour, Full Employment and Integration (ministre du Travail, du Plein emploi et de l’Insertion) · 2023 · Initiator
  • Gouvernement Sébastien Lecornu[7]Prime Minister — 2026 social security financing act (loi de financement de la sécurité sociale pour 2026) · 2025 · Suspension

Implementation

  • L’Assurance retraite (Cnav) — general scheme
  • Civil service pension schemes
  • Supplementary pension schemes

Status

Suspended

since December 30, 2025[7][8][9]

Phase-in shifted by one generation; set to resume in 2028 unless the law changes again

Stated objective

Bring the pension system back to balance by 2030.[1][6]

According to the government (report annexed to the law; report on the objectives and effects of the bill, January 2023)

  • Gross yield of the higher age and faster contribution-period increase

    €17.7bn

    in 2030 · according to the government, report on the objectives and effects of the bill (January 2023)[6]

    Before accompanying measures; €10.3bn in 2027.

Main measures

  • Legal age raised by 3 months per generation, from 62 to 64 (64 for people born from 1968 under the 2023 law).[1]
  • Contribution period for a full pension raised to 172 quarters from the 1965 generation (2023 law).[1][9]
  • Main special pension schemes closed to staff hired from 1 September 2023.[1][3]
  • Minimum pensions (minimum contributif) increased, with a benchmark of 85% of the net minimum wage.[1]
  • Early-retirement scheme for « long careers » adjusted.[3][1]

In data

Legal retirement age by generation: 2023 law, then after the 2026 financing act[1][7]

Minimum retirement age, general scheme

Legal retirement age by generation: 2023 law, then after the 2026 financing act — chart values
Generation2023 lawAfter the 2026 financing act
196463 years62 years 9 months
1965 (January–March)63 years 3 months62 years 9 months
1965 (April–December)63 years 3 months63 years
196663 years 6 months63 years 3 months
196763 years 9 months63 years 6 months
196864 years63 years 9 months
196964 years64 years

Scale starts at 62 years · 2023 law: +3 months per generation from people born on 1 September 1961, 64 from 1968. 2026 financing act (article 105): ages rewritten generation by generation, 64 from 1969, for pensions starting from 1 September 2026.

Key figures

Average retirement age (period indicator)

63.13 years

2025 · Estimate

according to the COR (2026 annual report)[10]

Pension system balance

-0.2% of GDP

2025 · Estimate

according to the COR (2026 annual report), as quoted by the Pension Monitoring Committee[9][10]

That is −€5.1bn, excluding financial income and charges.

Projected pension system balance

-0.9% of GDP

in 2045 · Projection

according to the COR, reference scenario (2026 annual report)[9][10]

Cost of the shift voted in the 2026 financing act (« nearly €2bn »)

€2bn

in 2030 · Projection

according to the Pension Monitoring Committee (2026 opinion)[9]

Cumulative debt of about €13bn between 2026 and 2033 according to DREES estimates quoted by the Committee.

Timeline

  1. Announced

    Plan presented by the Prime Minister[3]

  2. Under debate

    Debate opens in the Assemblée nationale[1]

  3. Bill adopted by the Senate[1]

  4. Government stakes its responsibility (article 49.3 of the Constitution)[4][1]

    The same day, the Senate adopts the joint committee text; in the Assemblée nationale, the Prime Minister stakes the government’s responsibility.

  5. Motion of censure defeated by nine votes; bill deemed adopted[5][1]

    278 votes for the motion, with 287 required.

  6. Adopted

    Constitutional Council ruling and promulgation[2][1]

    The Constitutional Council upholds the higher age and strikes down several provisions outside the scope of a financing act (including the senior-employment index and end-of-career contract).

  7. In force

    In force for pensions starting from this date[1]

  8. Social partners’ talks (« conclave ») end without agreement[9]

    The permanent joint delegation, which met in the first half of 2025, did not reach an agreement.

  9. Final adoption of the 2026 social security financing act[7]

  10. Suspended

    2026 social security financing act promulgated (article 105)[7][8][9]

    Phase-in shifted by one generation; set to resume in 2028 unless the law changes again

  11. Current step

    The shift applies to pensions starting from this date[7]

    Legal age of 62 years and 9 months for people born between 1 January 1963 and 31 March 1965.

  12. Upcoming — the outcome is not known

    Presidential election (first round, date set by the government)[11]

  13. Upcoming — the outcome is not known

    Increase in age and contribution period set to resume, unless the law changes[9]

The debate

Citoyen takes no position: arguments are reported as their authors put them.

According to its supporters

  • With longer lives and the baby-boom generations retiring, there are fewer contributors per retiree, which weakens the system’s finances.[6]
  • Without a higher age, restoring balance would mean raising contributions or cutting pensions.[6]
  • France’s minimum retirement age is among the lowest of comparable countries, where it is generally around 65.[6]

According to its opponents

  • The burden falls mainly on people who started work early and on physically demanding jobs.
  • With senior employment still low, part of the delay would turn into unemployment or inactivity before retirement rather than work.
  • Other funding options existed that would not have required raising the retirement age.

Indicators to watch

  • Employment rate, ages 60-64 · Eurostatno Citoyen card yet
  • Effective age of labour-market exit · OCDEno Citoyen card yet
  • Pension spending, % of GDP · Eurostatno Citoyen card yet
  • Pension system balance · CORno Citoyen card yet

Sources

  1. [1]Loi n° 2023-270 du 14 avril 2023 de financement rectificative de la sécurité sociale pour 2023 (JORF n° 0089 du 15 avril 2023), dont travaux préparatoires — Légifrance, April 15, 2023
  2. [2]Décision n° 2023-849 DC du 14 avril 2023 — Loi de financement rectificative de la sécurité sociale pour 2023 — Conseil constitutionnel, April 14, 2023
  3. [3]Réforme des retraites : les annonces de la Première ministre — Vie-publique.fr (DILA), January 10, 2023
  4. [4]Déclaration de Mme Élisabeth Borne, Première ministre, sur l'engagement de la responsabilité du Gouvernement sur le projet de loi de financement rectificative de la sécurité sociale pour 2023, Assemblée nationale, 16 mars 2023 — Vie-publique.fr (DILA), March 16, 2023
  5. [5]Analyse du scrutin n° 1240 (16e législature) — motion de censure, 20 mars 2023 — Assemblée nationale, March 20, 2023
  6. [6]Rapport sur les objectifs et les effets du projet de réforme des retraites — Gouvernement (publié sur Légifrance), January 2023
  7. [7]Loi n° 2025-1403 du 30 décembre 2025 de financement de la sécurité sociale pour 2026 (JORF n° 0306 du 31 décembre 2025), article 105 — Légifrance, December 31, 2025
  8. [8]Décision n° 2025-899 DC du 30 décembre 2025 — Loi de financement de la sécurité sociale pour 2026 — Conseil constitutionnel, December 30, 2025
  9. [9]Avis 2026 du Comité de suivi des retraites — Comité de suivi des retraites (publié sur Vie-publique.fr), July 9, 2026
  10. [10]Rapport annuel du COR, juin 2026 — données de synthèse (scénario de référence) — Conseil d'orientation des retraites (COR), June 2026
  11. [11]Compte rendu du Conseil des ministres du mercredi 1er juillet 2026 (calendrier électoral 2027) — Élysée, July 1, 2026