In practice, this means that men, who currently retire at the age of 60, will have to wait until they turn 63, reports the state news agency New China. Women currently retire at the age of 50 or 55, depending on their occupation. For them, the retirement age will be raised to 55 and 58, respectively.
The changes will be introduced gradually over a 15-year period, starting next year. The Chinese will also be allowed to retire later if they make such an agreement with their employer.
Behind the measures lies dramatic demographic changes. In 2023, China's population decreased for the second year in a row: the number of Chinese people decreased by over 2 million and the population stood at 1.409 billion people, according to the national statistics bureau. The number of births had then decreased for seven years in a row and had halved since 2016.
In parallel, the Chinese are getting older.
The retirement age in China has not been raised for decades and is among the lowest in the world. However, the issue has been discussed in Beijing for years, and Li Changan, a labor market economist at the University of International Business and Economics in Beijing, tells AFP that the news should not come as a surprise.
I think most people are mentally prepared for this.
