Since 29 June 2026, an eligible employee whose contractual retirement age is below the State Pension age of 66 can notify their employer in writing that they do not consent to retire at that earlier age. The law gives a right to use a formal process; it does not abolish every retirement age, guarantee continued employment in every case or require anyone to keep working.
What changed on 29 June 2026?
The Employment (Contractual Retirement Ages) Act 2025 came into force on 29 June 2026. It addresses the gap that can arise when an employment contract requires retirement before the State Pension age. An eligible employee may give written notice that they want to remain in employment rather than retire on the contractual date.
The employer must consider that notice. If the employer still intends to enforce the earlier contractual retirement age, a higher legal test applies: the decision must be objectively and reasonably justified by a legitimate aim, and the means used must be appropriate and necessary.
This is an employment right linked to the contractual retirement date. It does not by itself change the rules of an occupational pension scheme, create a pension entitlement or decide when pension benefits should be taken.
Who can use the new process?
The process is designed for an employee who has completed probation and whose employment contract sets a retirement age below the current State Pension age of 66. A common example is a contract that specifies retirement at 65.
The 2025 Act does not apply in the same way where:
- the contractual retirement age is already 66 or higher;
- the retirement age is set by legislation, including specified roles such as members of An Garda Síochána or the Defence Forces;
- the employee has not completed probation; or
- the proposed continuation is beyond the State Pension age rather than up to it.
People outside the Act may still have rights under employment equality law and may use the longer-working guidance, but their position needs to be assessed under the rules that apply to them.
When and how must notice be given?
An employee using the statutory process must notify the employer in writing. The notice should state that the employee does not consent to retire at the contractual retirement age and should identify the legal basis for the notification under section 5(1) of the 2025 Act.
The standard timing window is:
- not less than three months before the contractual retirement date; and
- not more than 12 months before that date.
If the employment contract requires a notice period longer than three months, the employee must give that contractual period or six months, whichever is shorter. Because the Act commenced on 29 June 2026 and requires at least three months’ notice, 29 September 2026 is the earliest contractual retirement date to which the new process can apply.
Keep a dated copy of the notice and evidence of delivery. The Workplace Relations Commission’s Code of Practice on Longer Working includes practical guidance and templates. This article explains the pension-planning implications and is not a substitute for employment-law advice.
What must an employer do?
An employer must consider a valid notification. If the employer accepts it, the continuation arrangements should be reflected in the employee’s contract.
If the employer decides to enforce the earlier retirement age, it must reply in writing within one month, explain the reasons and show why retiring that employee at that time is objectively and reasonably justified by a legitimate aim, using means that are appropriate and necessary.
The Act also protects employees against penalisation for proposing to use, or using, the notification process. Questions about a particular refusal, contractual wording or alleged penalisation belong with an employment-law specialist or the appropriate workplace-relations channel.
Does working longer mean leaving the pension untouched?
Not automatically. The employment contract, occupational pension scheme and State Pension are connected to retirement planning, but they are not the same arrangement. A scheme may have its own normal retirement age, contribution rules, late-retirement provisions and benefit options.
Before agreeing a later work date, ask the employer, trustees or scheme administrator to confirm in writing:
- whether employee and employer pension contributions will continue;
- how the scheme treats service after its normal retirement age;
- whether insurance benefits such as death-in-service cover continue;
- whether the investment strategy changes automatically near the original retirement date;
- whether a benefit quotation needs to be recalculated for the new date; and
- whether any pension already in payment affects continued scheme membership.
If you have a PRSA, personal pension or pensions from previous employments, check those separately. Continuing in one job does not automatically change every pension you hold.
How does this interact with the State Pension?
The State Pension (Contributory) is available from age 66, subject to the qualifying conditions and contribution record. Eligible people may choose to access it between ages 66 and 70, with later access potentially providing a higher rate. That is a separate decision from using the new employment process to work until 66.
Do not assume that one extra year of work guarantees the maximum State Pension. Request your social insurance contribution statement, check gaps or caring periods and use official entitlement information before building the State Pension into a retirement budget.
A five-part review before changing your retirement date
- Employment: read the retirement and notice clauses, confirm the contractual date and use the correct written process.
- Workplace pension: request written confirmation of contributions, cover, investment treatment and the revised benefit date.
- State Pension: check your PRSI record and distinguish age eligibility from the rate you may receive.
- Cash flow: compare take-home pay, continued saving, debt, planned spending and the income needed after work stops.
- Tax and benefits: check how salary, pension drawdown and any State payment may interact in the relevant tax year.
Re-run your retirement projection for both dates using the same assumptions. The useful comparison is not simply “work or retire”; it is the change in contributions, investment time, pension access, income needs and benefits under each timetable.
Frequently asked questions
Did Ireland increase the retirement age to 66?
The State Pension age is 66, but Ireland does not have one universal retirement age for every employee. The 2025 Act created a process for certain employees with a lower contractual retirement age to seek to remain until State Pension age.
Can an employer still require retirement at 65?
An employer receiving a valid statutory notification cannot simply rely on the contractual date. If it proposes to enforce that age, it must respond within the required time and meet the objective-justification test. Individual disputes require employment-law advice.
Do I have to work until 66?
No. The law gives eligible employees a choice to use the process. It does not compel an employee to remain in work.
Will employer pension contributions continue?
That depends on the employment and pension-scheme rules. Ask for written confirmation rather than assuming contributions and insured benefits continue unchanged.
Should I delay taking my pension if I keep working?
There is no universal answer. Access rules, tax, guarantees, investment risk and income needs vary by arrangement. Compare the documented options and obtain regulated personal advice where needed.
General information only. Reviewed against the Employment (Contractual Retirement Ages) Act 2025, its 2026 commencement, the WRC Code of Practice on Longer Working and current official State Pension information. Employment and pension outcomes depend on the contract, scheme and individual circumstances.
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