Singapore to raise retirement age to 65 in January 2029
The government has accepted six recommendations on senior employment, including wage support and funding for jobs with flexible workloads.
Singapore will bring forward its next retirement-age increase to January 2029 instead of 2030, Channel News Asia reported. The retirement age will move from 64 to 65, alongside an increase in the re-employment age from 69 to 70.
The new limits will prohibit age-based dismissal of workers younger than 65 and oblige employers to offer eligible staff re-employment until 70. The Tripartite Workgroup on Senior Employment said the changes would give older employees more certainty about remaining in work.
All six measures proposed by the workgroup have received government approval. Its membership includes the Ministry of Manpower, the National Trades Union Congress and the Singapore National Employers Federation.
The remaining proposals cover extended wage support for businesses re-employing seniors, additional help for lower-wage older workers and those not re-employed, and funding to create or expand jobs with flexible workloads. Implementation details are expected during the first half of 2027.
The measures follow a September government report showing that citizens aged 65 or older accounted for 21.4% of Singapore's population of citizens. That exceeded the United Nations threshold of 21% for a super-aged society, compared with 20.7% a year earlier and 13.7% a decade earlier.
Minister of State for Manpower Dinesh Vasu Dash said the recommendations sought to support sustainable employment through options such as staying in an existing job, changing roles or adapting working arrangements to personal circumstances.
