When Can I Retire?

Retirement is simply the time of your life when you stop working so the answer to “when can I retire?” is actually very simple: whenever you want.

Although most people retire in their 60s, there is nothing to suggest that you can’t retire in your 20s or even your 90s. In fact, since 2011, there is no legal age at which you have to retire but there are, however, a few benchmarks that you should consider for it to be a viable option.

For many, when you can retire comes down to when you can access your pension. We have covered pension management a few times before but for a brief breakdown here are the facts you need to know:

When can I access my pension?

Depending on the type of pension you have, this answer will vary. If you have a defined benefit pension, you will be able to start accessing your pension from 65, the current State Pension age (be sure to check this on the Gov website, though, as it is due to change in the coming years).

You may be able to access your pension earlier (normally at 55) if you have a defined contribution plan, with 25% of it being tax free.

With some pension schemes, you may be able to access your pot earlier, however doing this may incur more fees, much like paying off a mortgage ahead of schedule. There are exceptions to this, though (if you are seriously ill, for example).

Accessing the State Pension

The State Pension is a regular government funded payment that begins once you reach the State Pension age (65). For many people, the State Pension is only part of their total income in the later years as they will often have private pensions or workplace pensions alongside this.

The State Pension age is due to change to 67 in the next five years and then again roughly ten years after that. So for people born between April 1970 and April 1978, the age at which they will be able to access their State Pension is thought to be 68. While this is yet to be confirmed, you can still check your eligibility for the State Pension on the Gov website.

If the question you ask is “when can I retire” then the simple answer is whenever you think you are ready. There are no hard and fast rules but rather recommendations. Which have many detailed charts that look at the different options that you may wish to explore later on, along with information on what sort of benchmarks you will need to be reaching at different ages.

Retiring and doing so comfortably does not have to be a stretch for you, and relying on your pension for your later years is not the only option that you have.

Spring, for example, have over a decade of experience in helping retirees sell their homes in order to help them downsize, giving them the funds that allows them to enjoy retirement on their terms. To find out how Spring can help you, contact a member of our team today at [email protected].

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