Here in Russia it's 60 for women and 65 for men. which I think it used to be in the UK. I am over 75 now so maybe "Ancient" would be a good title to move on to, then I would be eligible for a maintenance grant, a bit like an old building ....... I quite like the idea of being called an "Ancient Brit"
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Old_age#Senior_citizen Senior citizen is a common euphemism for an old person used in American English, and sometimes in British English. It implies that the person being referred to is retired.[28][29][30][31] This in turn usually implies that the person is over the retirement age, which varies according to country. Synonyms include old age pensioner or pensioner in British English, and retiree and senior in American English. Some dictionaries describe widespread use of "senior citizen" for people over the age of 65.[32] When defined in an official context, senior citizen is often used for legal or policy-related reasons in determining who is eligible for certain benefits available to the age group. It is used in general usage instead of traditional terms such as old person, old-age pensioner, or elderly as a courtesy and to signify continuing relevance of and respect for this population group as "citizens" of society, of senior rank.[33] The term was apparently coined in 1938 during a political campaign.[34] Famed caricaturist Al Hirschfeld claimed on several occasion that his father Isaac Hirschfeld invented the term 'senior citizen'.[35][36][37] It has come into widespread use in recent decades in legislation, commerce, and common speech. Especially in less formal contexts, it is often abbreviated as "senior(s)", which is also used as an adjective.... Click the link for the "whole story"
Here in the Uk the state pension age has risen.... so both my husband and I will be 66 before we're entitled to our state pension...4 years away for me but 9 years for him... What's really irritating is that a free bus pass is available for everyone in the uk from the age of 60... except in England. Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales all are entitled to this pass...but I will not be entitled to it living in England for another 15 years.. Appalling!!
The state pension is what everyone receives after reaching retirement age in the UK... We pay for it through our working lives in national insurance contributions. The state pension currently in the uk for anyone who has worked all their lives and paid into the sytem is very low...around £120.00 per week. It's paid pro rata to those who have never worked..or been long term unemployed... many elderly in the UK are living on the Basic state pension... living?... existing should be the operative word It's really imperative in the Uk if at all possible to provide for yourself a Private pension during your working life..... but those who are or were on minimum wage or were stay at home single parents just simply cannot afford to do that... there is no such thing as 401k in this country as is available in the USA for the average working person...
This sounds very much like our Social Security system here in the United States Holly. From our working salaries were deducted monies for retirement (SS), and health insurance (Medicare). There are different amounts given when you retire according to the income you made but there also is a cap on how much SS you can collect. I think 401K's and other retirement accounts are good things but there are so many here that can't afford to put anything into those accounts either. It seems that no matter where a person lives...there problems can be very much the same.
Here in Canada it is almost the same except living in the province of Quebec, where I lived and worked all my life.. I paid Quebec income tax as well as Federal income tax during all of my working years.. Now I have a Quebec pension as well as a Federal pension.. My Quebec pension I took when I was only 60 years of age and I didn't wait till I was 65.. The reason is, I wasn't going to contribute to it any more, so why not take it then.. My Federal pension I took at 65.. I retired working when I was only 56 years old and didn't pay anything into the pensions since.. Unfortunately, I didn't have a company pension as I worked independently most of my life.. Today, the total of my 2 pensions is way more per month than what I need to live very comfortably.. Now, my wife is much the same as I am, but a bit less than mine.. It all depends on the amount earned during the working years.. Combined, we are laughing all the way to the bank every month................... Yes we paid like heck during our working years, but look at us now............
OK @Steve North , I don't mind helping you out...if you want to offload some of that extra money you have every month , I'm willing to help you and take it off your hands...it's a hard job but someone has to do it...
Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm I worked hard for it and now I think I deserve it.. When we were young we all balked at the idea of paying taxes, but now that we are retired, we appreciate what we did during our working years...
I more or less retired 3 years ago. I had planned on working part time, and did for a while. My husband is 7 years younger than me, and he cant fully retire for another four years. However i do not see him lasting that long at his present job. He has had four hand surgeries, and in Feb. had foot surgery- hopefully returns to work end of this month. If he retires a bit early, will have to work some where part time, just to pay for medical and dental. Once you reach the sixties, medical should be free Ok i can dream- right
Unfortunately @Steve North regardless of how much Taxes one has paid, or how much one has contributed to a private pension, these can be almost worthless due to poor investment choices of pension companies .. and deeply unfortunately and tragically this has happened to many hard working high tax paying people, who trusted other people with their money.. and although having worked very hard right up until the state retiring age often 50 years or more , find themselves without a pot to piss in... excuse the vernacular..