When To Retire

The approval of the Saudi Council of Ministers, headed by Crown Prince and Prime Minister Prince Mohammed bin Salman, on Tuesday, July 04, 2024, to amend the social insurance system, which sets the retirement age between 58 and 65 years, is still the talk of the hour and councils in Saudi Arabia between supporters and opponents to approve the new amendment.

The new amendment.. The amendment aims to provide better opportunities for a decent retirement and ensure the stability of the future of future generations. the amended pension system will be a key pillar for achieving financial and social stability for individuals, and will have a great positive impact on the national economy in general. it is a new beginning towards a bright and safe future for all in Saudi Arabia, and reflects the extent of Saudi commitment to caring for and welfare of segments of society comprehensively.

Demographic changes pose challenges to societies and governments in the world, and require additional budgets and treatments in order to keep up with the pension, health and social care systems, increasing and changing needs, so the majority of governments around the world, including Saudi Arabia, have begun to raise the retirement age.

The reason can be primarily in the demographic changes in the kingdom of Saudi Arabia, accelerated which means that members of society will live longer, and therefore the number of elderly people is increasing and the pension and health care bill is rising on the government.

According to the World Health Organization, the proportion of people over the age of sixty around the world will increase from 12% in 2015 to 22% by 2050, and by 2030, 1 out of 6 people in the world will be aged 60 years or older, reaching more than two billion people by 2050.studies also indicate that healthy age rates in Saudi Arabia are increasing, and the average age of an individual is 65 years, due to the excellent healthcare in Saudi Arabia and the quality of life.

The Global Retirement Index has indicated that 60% of people around the world expect that they will work after retirement age to meet the requirements of life, and in Saudi Arabia, people’s giving has become great, and they refuse to leave work at an early age, and this means increasing pressure on the pension fund, and it has consequences for future generations who will bear additional financial burdens, in addition, when a person retires at an early age, he deprives the state of benefiting from the outcome of the accumulated experiences and experience from his years of work, on which the state spent a lot on education And training.

Considering the raising of the retirement age, the age of referral to retirement varies from one country to another, as it currently ranges from 55 to 70 years, as many countries are moving towards reassessing the most suitable age for retirement, especially with the rise of the “average healthy age”, i.e. the number of years in which individuals live healthy, and there are many countries that have realized that the age of sixty has become In Britain, for example, the retirement age has increased to currently reach 66 years for both men and women, and it will reach 67 years by 2028, in France according to the law on pension reform, according to which the retirement age will be raised from 62 to 64 years by 2030, and in Germany, Greece, Italy, Denmark and Iceland, for example, the age is 67, and experts prefer the retirement age to be 62, and the retirement age is raised for societies suffering from old age and where there are fewer entrants to the labor market than those who leave it.

There is no doubt that the amendment of the social Takaful insurance system, which was recently approved by the state, in view of the many challenges for Man and the state, especially at the present time and in the future, whose complexity and requirements are increasing to provide a stable and safe life, are challenges that need solutions.