It is necessary to consider amending regulations on deducting the percentage of pension benefits when retiring early

In mid-2026, when he was 59 years old and had 35 years of social insurance (BHXH) contributions, Mr. Bang Giang (name of character changed), living in Binh Quoi ward, Ho Chi Minh City, quit his job. After going for health assessment, he suffered a working capacity reduction of over 61%.

According to current regulations, Mr. Giang is eligible for early retirement and will be deducted 5% of his pension (because he retired 2 years and 6 months earlier than the regulated age of 61 years and 6 months, applicable to men working in normal conditions retiring in 2026). After considering, Mr. Giang decided to wait until he is 62 years old to receive a pension rate of 75% according to regulations.

Another case, also 59 years old and has 20 years of social insurance contributions. According to the provisions of the current Law on Social Insurance, this case has more than 15 years of social insurance contributions, so it will be eligible for pension benefits, and if it is eligible for early retirement due to reduced working capacity, then each year of early retirement will also be deducted 2% of the pension benefit rate.

Mr. Giang shared: "Actually, I don't want to quit, but because my health is no longer good enough to go to work, I quit early. But if I have to deduct 5% of my pension because I quit 2 years and 6 months early, I will only receive 70% of my pension and thus the pension is also low, while prices are increasing, which will affect my life, so I will wait a while longer to receive 75% of my pension.

Mr. Giang also said that deducting the percentage of pension benefits when retiring early is equal to 2%, which will not be fair for those who pay more social insurance and those who pay less social insurance.

Lawyer Nguyen Van Hau, Member of the Central Committee of the Vietnam Fatherland Front, said that according to Clause 3, Article 66 of the 2024 Law on Social Insurance, for people retiring early due to reduced working capacity under the conditions of Article 65 of this Law, for each year of early retirement, the pension benefit rate is reduced by 2%; in case of retiring before the age of less than 6 months, it is not reduced, from 6 months to less than 12 months, it is reduced by 1%.

This regulation applies a uniform deduction level, without distinguishing between people with long social insurance contributions and people with short contributions, because everyone is deducted the same percentage rate. This does not really reflect the contribution process of employees, especially those who have participated in social insurance for decades but are forced to retire early due to health reasons," lawyer Hau said.

According to Lawyer Nguyen Van Hau, it is necessary to study and amend the regulation on deducting the pension percentage in the direction of differentiating based on the social insurance contribution period, in which the longer the contribution period, the lower the deduction level when retiring before age.

This approach not only ensures the principle of contribution - benefit, recognizing more fairly the social insurance contribution process of employees, but also helps protect rights and maintain a stable income level in old age. At the same time, the policy also creates motivation for people to continue to participate in social insurance for a long time, limiting the trend of receiving one-time social insurance and contributing to strengthening confidence in the social security system.

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