Skip to content
Get in touch

Glossary

Reference Age

The reference age is the age at which a person becomes entitled to an old-age pension from the AHV (Old-Age and Survivors' Insurance) without reductions or supplements. It is 65 and has applied to men and women alike since the AHV 21 reform took effect on 1 January 2024 (Art. 21 para. 1 AHVG). For women born in 1961, 1962 and 1963, a transition phase sets it at 64 years and three, six or nine months respectively; from the 1964 birth year it is 65 for them too. In occupational pension provision the reference age is 65 for men and women, because Art. 13 para. 1 BVG refers to Art. 21 para. 1 AHVG.

The reference age is the legal benchmark for an old-age pension without reductions or supplements. On its own it requires neither drawing the pension nor stopping work. Early drawing and deferral move the start of the pension relative to the reference age.

At a glance

  • The reference age is 65 for men and women, with a transition rule for women up to the 1963 birth year (see below). Entitlement to the old-age pension arises on the first day of the month after the reference age is reached (Art. 21 AHVG).
  • Women reach the reference age at 64 (up to and including the 1960 birth year), 64 years and 3 months (1961), 64 years and 6 months (1962) and 64 years and 9 months (1963). From the 1964 birth year it is 65 (transitional provisions to the amendment of 17 December 2021 to the AHVG, letter a).
  • The AHV pension can be drawn early from the completed age of 63, in full or as a share of 20 to 80 percent (Art. 40 AHVG), or deferred by one to five years (Art. 39 AHVG). Early drawing reduces the pension, deferral increases it.
  • Women of the transitional generation (birth years 1961 to 1969; source: fact sheet 3.01 of the AHV/IV Information Office, as of 1 January 2026) are entitled to a pension supplement, graded by income and birth year, if they do not draw their old-age pension early (Art. 34bis AHVG). If they do draw it early, they can do so from age 62 at lower reduction rates (Art. 40c AHVG). Art. 34bis and Art. 40c AHVG are in force from 1 January 2025 to 31 December 2033.
  • In occupational pension provision the reference age is 65 for men and women (Art. 13 para. 1 BVG). The retirement benefit can be drawn early from age 63 and deferred until age 70 (Art. 13 para. 2 BVG). Pension funds may provide for a lower age within the statutory limits (Art. 13 para. 3 BVG).

Frequently asked questions

Women up to and including the 1960 birth year reach it at 64. For the 1961 birth year it is 64 years and 3 months, for 1962 it is 64 years and 6 months, and for 1963 it is 64 years and 9 months. From the 1964 birth year the reference age is 65, as for men. The pension entitlement arises on the first day of the month after the reference age is reached (Art. 21 para. 2 AHVG).
No. The old-age pension can be drawn early, in full or in part, from the completed age of 63 (Art. 40 AHVG) or deferred by one to five years (Art. 39 AHVG). Early drawing reduces the pension and deferral increases it, in each case by the actuarial equivalent of the benefits concerned (Art. 39 AHVG, Art. 40a AHVG).
Yes. In occupational pension provision the reference age is 65 for men and women, because Art. 13 para. 1 BVG refers to Art. 21 para. 1 AHVG. The BVG does not adopt the differing AHV ages of women born in 1961 to 1963. The retirement benefit can be drawn early from the completed age of 63 and deferred until the completed age of 70 (Art. 13 para. 2 BVG). A pension fund may provide for a lower age within the statutory limits (Art. 13 para. 3 BVG).

Part of the topic

Pension & Retirement

Sources: Systematische Rechtssammlung (fedlex), AHVG SR 831.10, DE · Systematische Rechtssammlung (fedlex), BVG SR 831.40, DE · Information Center OASI/DI, 3.01 "OASI Old-age Pensions and Helplessness Allowances"

This entry is for general information purposes only and does not constitute investment, legal or tax advice. It is a simplified summary of the legal position and tax treatment.