According to data requested by Lusa from the Social Security Institute (ISS), in 2023, 102,435 new old-age pensions were granted, 16,487 more compared to 2022, the year in which new pensions totaled 85,948.

The ISS highlights that the average value of new pensions "has been on an upward trend in recent years, as a result of the contributory careers of new pensioners being more consistent than in previous decades".

In 2023, the average value of new pensions was 687.41 euros, an increase of almost 23 euros compared to the previous year (664.77 euros).

The institute highlights that, compared to 2017, the year in which the special regime that began to allow early retirement without penalties for very long careers came into force, the increase in the average pension value in 2023 was greater than 67 euros, since in that year the average pension was 620.25 euros.

"On October 1, 2017, Decree-Law No. 126-B/2017 came into force, which establishes a special regime for early access to old-age pension for beneficiaries of the general social security regime and the social protection regime convergent with very long contributory careers", recalls the ISS in its responses to Lusa.

The data also shows that in 2023 workers retired on average earlier than in 2022, as the average age of new pensioners was 65.1 years last year (compared to 65.2 years in 2022).


The legal retirement age in 2023 was set at 66 years and 4 months, remaining stable in 2024.

Last year, 21,769 new pensions were granted under the early pension scheme, a decrease of 7.6% compared to 2022.

Early retirements generally suffer a double cut, due to the sustainability factor, which in 2023 corresponded to a penalty of 13.8% in the value of the pension, and a reduction of 0.5% for each month of early retirement. relative to the legal or personal retirement age.

Of the total number of early pensions last year, more than 40% (9,039) were granted after long-term unemployment, that is, to people who had been unemployed for more than 12 months and who met the conditions to access this special retirement regime.

These pensions awarded after long-term unemployment represented 8.8% of the total new pensions in 2023, while in 2022 this percentage was 12% and in 2017 20.7%, says the institute.