November the 4th, 2026 – Women in Croatia will now need to wait longer to retire, with new rules coming into force as of January the 1st, 2027.
As of January the 1st 2027, the conditions for women to take regular and early pensions are changing. Index reports that women in Croatia will have to be three months older than this year, and for early retirement, the required pensionable service is also increasing, according to data from the Croatian Pension Insurance Institute (HZMO). For a regular pension next year, women in Croatia will have to be at least 64 years and three months old and have 15 years of pensionable service. In 2026, the requirement is 64 years of age and at least 15 years of service.
stricter rules for early retirement
The changes also apply to those hoping to begin drawing their pensions earlier. Women will have to be three months older than they did this year in order to retire. This year, for early retirement, at least 59 years of age and 34 years of service are required. This means that from the beginning of next year both conditions increase by three months.
when will men and women be equalised?
The age limit for women is gradually increasing every year. In 2028, women will need to be 64 years and six months of age in order to claim their regular pension, and in 2029, they’ll need to be 64 years and nine months of age. From the 1st of January 2030, the conditions are completely equalised. Both women and men will then need 65 years of age and at least 15 years of pensionable service for a regular old-age pension. For early retirement from 2030 the requirement of at least 60 years of age and 35 years of pensionable service will apply to both genders.
Taking an early pension also means a lower initial pension amount. Under the current law, the pension is reduced by 0.2 percent for each month of earlier departure in relation to the prescribed age for a regular old-age pension. This means that the reduction amounts to 2.4 percent for one year of earlier retirement, or a maximum of 12 percent for five years. However, from the beginning of 2026 the reduction is abolished after the recipient of the early pension reaches the age of 70.
who can retire early?
Special conditions apply to long-term insured persons. They can acquire the right to their regular pension at the age of 60 and with 41 years of insurance service in actual duration. This possibility applies to women and men who meet the prescribed conditions, and it differs from an earlier pension. Women who have already fulfilled the conditions for a pension under earlier regulations do not automatically lose the acquired right because the age limit additionally increases at the beginning of next year.
