Staggered Retirement Law: Current Status in Parliament and Conditions

Current Status in Parliament Twenty-two months ago, Member of Parliament Ediz Ün presented a proposal for a staggered retirement law to the Turkish Grand National Assembly (TBMM).
Since then, no action has been taken: the proposal has not been discussed by a parliamentary committee, has not been voted on in the plenary session, and is still awaiting presidential approval.
Legal Process For a law to enter force, it must first be examined by a committee, then voted on in the TBMM plenary session, receive the President’s signature, and finally be published in the Official Gazette.
None of these steps have occurred for the staggered retirement proposal.
Retirement Conditions Eligibility varies by the year of entry into the Social Security Institution (SGK): Before 1999: no age requirement; 5,000–5,975 insured days for women, 20 years for women and 25 years for men.
1999–2008: women 58 years + 7,000 insured days; men 60 years + 7,000 insured days.
After 2008: baseline ages 58 for women and 60 for men, 7,200 insured days, with the retirement age gradually rising to 65.
Association Demands The Justice for Retirement Association seeks the following: 1999–2000 entrants: women 43, men 45 years, 6,400 insured days.
2008 entrants: women 51, men 53 years, 7,000 insured days.
The parliamentary proposal proposes: 1999–2000 entrants: women 43, men 45 years, 6,250 insured days.
2008 entrants: women 49, men 51 years, 6,925 insured days.
Minister’s Statements Finance Minister Mehmet Şimşek highlighted the importance of keeping inflation under control amid a challenging economic environment during the Mid-Term Program meeting.
His remarks led to criticism that the staggered retirement reform carries a high economic cost.