When an employee retires

Old-Age Pension Checklist for Supervisors and HR

1. Check if your employee meets the requirements for old-age pension

• Your employee can retire on old-age pension once they have reached the minimum retirement age and the employment relationship has ended.
• You can check retirement ages at http://www.elo.fi/elakeika. In the company’s online service, there is a list of employees who will reach the minimum retirement age within the next 10 years.
• The employee must apply for the pension themselves.

2. Ensure your employee terminates their employment

• The employment contract ends automatically at the end of the month in which the employee reaches the maximum retirement age. If the employee retires earlier, they must terminate their employment in accordance with normal notice periods.
• If the employer wishes to end the employment before the employee’s maximum retirement age, normal termination grounds apply. In other words, reaching the minimum retirement age is not a valid reason for termination.
• The employer and employee may also agree to continue the employment beyond the maximum retirement age, even though the contract would otherwise end automatically.

3. Agree on vacation

• If your employee has unused vacation days, you can agree whether they will take the vacation before the employment ends or whether you will compensate it in cash.

4. Report the end date of employment to the Incomes Register

• You must report the employee’s final earnings and the end date of employment to the Incomes Register. Based on this information, the employee can receive a final pension decision.

Partial Old-Age Pension

Partial old-age pension gives your employee the opportunity to reduce their workload before retiring on full old-age pension. As a partial pension, they can take 25% or 50% of the pension accrued by the end of the previous year. The minimum age for partial old-age pension is:

• For those born in 1963 or earlier: 61 years
• For those born in 1964: 62 years
• For those born in 1965 or later: three years before their own minimum old-age pension age

Working while on partial old-age pension is flexible. Your employee can choose whether to continue working during the partial pension period or not. Any changes to the employment relationship, such as reducing working hours, are always agreements between the employee and the employer. Your employee is entitled to partial old-age pension even if they continue working as before.

Work during partial old-age pension is insured, and the employee continues to accrue pension as usual.

Support if Your Employee’s Work Ability Declines

If your employee’s work ability deteriorates, they may be eligible for:

• Vocational rehabilitation
• Disability pension
• Career pension

Vocational Rehabilitation

Your employee can receive support from Elo’s vocational rehabilitation if, due to illness or injury, they cannot manage their work tasks and are at risk of disability. Vocational rehabilitation can also help when returning to work after a temporary disability pension (rehabilitation allowance).

Elo’s vocational rehabilitation offers measures to support continued work or return to work, such as workplace rehabilitation (work trial), job coaching, support for entrepreneurship, and training. If needed, a work coach will assist in selecting and planning the right measure.

Vocational rehabilitation is always the primary option before disability pension. We assess eligibility for rehabilitation when processing a disability pension application. If the criteria are met, your employee will receive a preliminary decision on rehabilitation rights without a separate application.

Disability Pension and Rehabilitation Allowance

Disability pension is permanent, while rehabilitation allowance is temporary. Both are full disability pensions and require that your employee’s work ability has decreased by at least 60%. Rehabilitation allowance is granted when recovery of work ability is expected.

Applications are submitted after a long sick leave, usually following a sickness allowance period granted by Kela. Disability pension requires one year of continuous incapacity for work. The employee must attach a B medical certificate to the application. The treating physician will indicate whether the application is for disability pension or temporary rehabilitation allowance.

Partial Disability Pension and Partial Rehabilitation Allowance

Disability pension and rehabilitation allowance can be granted as partial benefits if your employee’s work ability has decreased by at least 40% due to illness or injury for at least one year.

Years-of-service pension

Eligibility for Years-of-service pension requires at least 38 years of work in physically or mentally demanding jobs. Years-of-service pension can start at age 63 at the earliest if continuing work is difficult for health reasons and disability pension is not an option.

Survivor’s Pension for Your Employee’s Family

Survivor’s pension provides security for your employee’s family in the event of death. Eligibility may apply to:

• A child under 20 years
• A spouse
• A cohabiting partner
• A former spouse

Survivor’s pensions include widow’s pension and child’s pension