General conditions for receiving pensions: According to the Social Insurance Law 2024, employees must simultaneously meet two conditions on social insurance payment period and retirement age to receive pensions.
Regarding the social insurance payment period: Employees must have paid compulsory social insurance for 15 years or more. This is an important change compared to the old regulation (20-year requirement), creating conditions for many employees with a short period of social insurance participation to access pension benefits. For voluntary social insurance participants, the required social insurance payment period is also 15 years or more.
Regarding retirement age: The retirement age is implemented according to the roadmap prescribed in the Labor Code 2019. Specifically, For men, from the age of 60 years and 3 months in 2021, it will increase by 3 months per year until reaching the age of 62 in 2028. For women, from the age of 55 years and 4 months in 2021, it will increase by 4 months per year until reaching the age of 60 in 2035.
Cases of early retirement
The law also stipulates some special cases where employees are allowed to retire at a lower age than normal working conditions, but must still ensure the minimum social insurance payment period.
For workers working in arduous, toxic, dangerous jobs or working in areas with particularly difficult socio-economic conditions: Employees with a total period of compulsory social insurance contributions of 15 years or more when working in these jobs or working in areas with special difficulties (including working time in areas with regional allowance coefficient of 0.7 or higher before January 1, 2021) are allowed to retire at a lower age than the general regulations. The retirement age in this case may be lower but not more than 5 years compared to the retirement age under normal working conditions at the time of retirement as prescribed.
For workers working in underground coal mining: Workers who have worked in underground coal mining for 15 years or more are allowed to retire at a maximum age of 10 years lower than the retirement age under normal working conditions. Specific tasks are specified in Appendix I of Decree No. 158/2025/ND-CP of the Government.
For officers, professional soldiers, people's police and some other special subjects: When these subjects retire and have paid compulsory social insurance for 15 years or more, they can retire at a maximum age of 05 years lower than the general regulations, unless otherwise provided in specialized laws.
For employees infected with HIV/AIDS due to occupational accidents: Employees in this case are entitled to pension when they have paid compulsory social insurance for 15 years or more regardless of age conditions.
For employees with reduced working capacity: Employees with reduced working capacity can also retire early but must meet the conditions for longer social insurance payment period and the pension will be deducted due to early retirement (a 2% reduction for each year of early retirement). Regarding the conditions for enjoying, employees must have paid compulsory social insurance for 20 years or more. Specific cases are regulated as follows:
- Retire 5 years earlier than the maximum if the working capacity is reduced from 61% to less than 81%.
- Retire 10 years earlier than the maximum if the working capacity is reduced by 81% or more.
- People who have worked for 15 years or more in a particularly arduous, toxic, dangerous job or job and have a working capacity reduction of 61% or more are also entitled to a pension at a lower level.
