The Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment and the Department of State have published the Employment (Contractual Retirement Ages) Bill 2025.
What is the Employment (Contractual Retirement Ages) Bill 2025?
The new Bill will allow employees to remain in employment up until the State Pension Age (66), even if the retirement age set out in their employment contract is below this threshold.
As an employer, this means that you can no longer enforce a mandatory retirement age lower than 66.
This new Bill is not intended to compel employees to remain in the workforce for longer. Instead, it is aimed at facilitating those employees who do wish to work up until the State Pension Age. For other employees, who are happy to retire at their company’s contractual retirement age, this Bill will not affect them.
If an employee does wish to work beyond 65, they can now inform their employer of this request and work up to the point when they can receive the State Pension.
How will the Bill affect my business?
Previously, Irish businesses could enforce a mandatory retirement age lower than 66, once they could prove that it was appropriate and necessary. Now, employers will have to review requests from employees who wish to work beyond that point
As a result, businesses may need to adjust their HR documentation. Employment contracts and retirement policies will need to be reviewed and adapted to comply with the Bill, and any changes made will need to be communicated clearly to staff.
Secondly, businesses should conduct a payroll risk assessment, to determine whether this legislation is likely to affect their staffing costs, either now or in the future. Changes may need to be made to the business’ budgeting if staff costs are likely to rise.
