Australians are still intending to retire between 65 and 66, according to fresh figures from ABS.
“While the average age that people intend to retire has risen over time, it hasn’t changed much in the last 10 years,” said Bjorn Jarvis (pictured above), ABS head of labour statistics. “This average has been between 65 years and 65.6 years for close to a decade, since 2014-15.”
Men tend to retire slightly later than women, but the gap is closing.
“In 2022-23, there was around half a year difference between men and women, compared to a year difference a decade ago, and a two-year difference around 10 years before that.” Jarvis said in a media release.
People in agriculture, forestry, and fishing intend to retire at 68.3 years, the highest average, while those in mining plan to retire at 63.7 years, the lowest.
The ABS data also showed the actual age when retirees stopped working, with people retiring later on average.
“In 2022-23, people who retired in the past 20 years did so, on average, at 61.4 years,” Jarvis said. “This average has risen from 58.5 years in 2014-15 and 57.4 years in 2004-05.
Retirees from the arts and recreation services industry retired later than those in any other industry, at 64.4 years. The youngest average retirement age was in accommodation and food services, at 58.5 years.
Government pensions remain the main income source for 43% of retirees, followed by superannuation at 27%, ABS reported.
The number of people with no personal income at retirement has fallen from 25% in 2012-13 to 12% in 2022-23.
“In particular, the percentage of women reporting no personal income has dropped considerably, down from 37% to 18%,” Jarvis said.
“The number of women who relied on their partner’s income as their main source of funds for meeting living costs at retirement has fallen by more than 10 percentage points over the decade, dropping from 44% in 2012-13 to 31 per cent in 2022-23.”
Financial security (36%) and personal health (22%) are the most common factors influencing retirement decisions. One in eight retirees cited reaching the eligibility age for a pension as a key factor, ABS reported.
For more detailed insights, read "Retirement and Retirement Intentions, Australia, 2022-23 financial year".
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