On January 1, 2024, the biggest change to Swiss state pensions in 30 years took effect. The AHV 21 reform does three things: raises women's retirement age from 64 to 65 (phased over 4 years), introduces flexible retirement for everyone between 63 and 70, and provides transitional supplements for women born 1961-1969.
The women's retirement age equalization
- Women born 1960 and earlier: retire at 64 (unchanged)
- Born 1961: retire at 64 years and 3 months
- Born 1962: retire at 64 years and 6 months
- Born 1963: retire at 64 years and 9 months
- Born 1964+: retire at 65 (equalized with men)
The flexibility window (63-70)
Before AHV 21, you either retired at 64/65 or you waited. Now anyone can:
- Draw pension early from age 63 (with a permanent actuarial reduction of 6.8%/year)
- Defer pension up to age 70 (with a permanent increase of 5.2%-31.5% depending on deferral length)
- Draw a PARTIAL pension (20%-80%) while continuing to work part-time
The 13th AHV pension (December 2026)
A separate popular initiative (passed March 2024) adds a 13th monthly AHV payment starting December 2026. This is worth one full month's pension, CHF 1,225 to CHF 2,450 depending on your contribution record. It stacks on top of AHV 21 changes.
Compensation for affected women
Women born 1961-1969 receive either:
- A supplement to their pension if they retire at the new (higher) age, OR
- A reduced early-retirement penalty if they choose to retire at the old age
