Retirement pension for those born between 1954 and 1962

Changes in terms of benefits under the National Insurance Act

Who is entitled to retirement pension?

As a rule, to be entitled to retirement pension you must have had pensionable income and / or have at least five years of National Insurance cover, i.e. you must have lived and / or worked in Norway.

When do you draw a retirement pension?

It is up to you to decide when and how you would like to draw your retirement pension and how much you want to work while doing so. You may draw retirement pension from the month after you turn 62. To draw retirement pension before the age of 67, you must have sufficient earnings (site in Norwegian).

Use NAV's online pension service Din pensjon to check the earliest you can start drawing your retirement pension and submit an online application.

Combine work and retirement pension

You may work while receiving a retirement pension (site in Norwegian) without your pension being reduced.

How do you accumulate a retirement pension?

New regulations for accumulation of a retirement pension from the National Insurance Scheme were introduced in 2010.

Those born in the period 1954 and up to and including 1962 will accumulate a retirement pension according to the old and new accumulation rules (text in Norwegian).

Using NAV's online pension service at Din pensjon you may calculate your pension to see how it is distributed according to the new and old rules.

Examples of pension calculations (site in Norwegian). 

If you have only lived in Norway for a short period before turning 67 years of age, you may be eligible for supplementary benefits

Life expectancy adjustments

Your accumulated pension is distributed according to the life expectancy of your age group. This is called life expectancy adjustment (site in Norwegian). If life expectancy increases, each age group must work longer than the previous age group in order to receive the same pension.

Life expectancy adjustment for those born between 1954 and 1962 is carried out using ratios and annuity divisors (site in Norwegian). The part of the pension calculated according to the old rules is adjusted for life expectancy using ratios, and the part calculated according to new rules is adjusted for life expectancy using annuity divisors. The ratios and annuity divisors are determined on the basis of the anticipated life expectancy of the people in your age group.

How much retirement pension will you receive?

Using NAV's online pension service Din pensjon you can calculate your retirement pension, see when you can start drawing retirement pension and how much pension you have accumulated. You can also see what happens if you only draw some of your pension or what happens to your retirement pension payments if you change the date you want to start drawing retirement pension.

How much retirement pension you choose to receive, and when you start receiving it, affects how much retirement pension you will receive. You may chose different pension levels: 20, 40, 50, 60, 80 or 100 per cent of your retirement pension.

Your monthly retirement pension will be higher the longer you wait to start drawing a retirement pension. Your pension may also be higher if you continue to work while still receiving retirement pension. You may accumulate pension rights up to and including the year you turn 75.

When and how do you apply for retirement pension?

You may start drawing retirement pension from the month after your turn 62, if you have accumulated sufficient pension rights. You should apply for retirement pension (site in Norwegian) around three months before you want payment to start. It is not possible to apply for retroactive flexible retirement pension, and the earliest date on which you will be entitled to retirement pension will be the month after NAV has received your application.

The simplest way to apply for a retirement pension is through Din pensjon online service (site in Norwegian). You will receive a reply within a few minutes.­ If we do not manage to process your application automatically, you will be notified of this. You may also apply for your retirement pension using a paper application. Processing paper applications may take longer (site in Norwegian).

How is your retirement pension adjusted?

While you accumulate retirement pension, your pension rights are adjusted (site in Norwegian) annually according to average wage growth. 

How long can you receive retirement pension?

Your retirement pension from the National Insurance Scheme is a life-long payment. In the event of death, retirement pension will be paid up to and including the month of death.

Relevant supplementary payments

If your spouse, partner or co-habiting partner dies, you may be entitled to have the deceased’s pension rights included in the calculation of your retirement pension. If you support children under the age of 18 or married, you may be entitled to dependant supplement. This supplement includes child and / or spouse supplement.

Moving abroad?

If you are moving abroad and receiving retirement pension from NAV, you must check whether you can still receive your retirement pension.

If you have lived or worked abroad, you may be entitled to retirement pension from another country (text in Norwegian). You can read more about staying abroad under International.

Notify changes

If you are receiving retirement pension and there are changes in your family situation or you are planning a long-term stay abroad, or there are changes in the income of your spouse or co-habiting partner, these might affect the payments you receive from NAV. In such cases, you must notify NAV immediately.

Payments

Read more about Payment dates, holiday pay and tax withholding. 

You may also check your payments on NAV's online pension service at Din pensjon.

Most of the information is available here in English. There are also links to other more detailed information; however, some of this information is only available in Norwegian.