Nearly 40% of Belgians aged between 50 and 74 receive a retirement pension, with almost one in ten continuing to work in the first six months after receiving their initial retirement pension.
According to a survey released on Monday by Statbel, Belgium’s statistics bureau, which surveyed nearly 14,000 people in 2023. the primary reason for continuing to work, cited by 44.1% of respondents, was "enjoying work and being productive".
Financial necessity was mentioned by 15.7%, and maintaining social contacts by 13.3%. Notably, men were more likely to report enjoying work and being productive, while women more frequently cited maintaining social contacts as a decisive factor.
The average age at which the first retirement pension was received is 62.5 years. Most retirees (63.3%) receive only a statutory retirement pension without any supplementary pension.
Various combinations exist with supplementary pensions (through regular or one-time payouts), with the most common being a statutory retirement pension combined with a supplementary pension through an individual scheme, such as a pension savings plan (17.6%).
Among those aged 50 to 74 who do not yet receive a statutory retirement pension, nearly 70% plan to retire at the statutory pension age, 26.2% intend to retire early, and just under 4% plan to retire after the statutory pension age.
