Retirement age victims ("EYT") who have been expressing their victimization for a long time finally took a deep breath with the adoption of the draft law submitted to the parliament and the publication of the said law in the Official Gazette no. 32121 on 03.03.2023.   

In conjunction with the temporary article added to the Social Security and General Health Insurance Law no. 5510 dated 31/5/2006 the insured persons who started to work as insured before 08.08.1999 and who could not retire because they could not meet the age requirement, will be able to retire with this law if they meet the stipulated conditions.

With the regulation, it will be possible to be entitled to retire for approximately 2 million insured persons who meet the stipulated conditions with their application to Social Security Institution (“SGK”).

• Who Will Benefit From the Regulation ?

The following persons will benefit from the law that entered into force:

- Those who started to work before  8.9.1999 (included), within the scope of the insurance against death, the old age insurance and the disability insurance and,

- Those who started to work after 9.9.1999 (included) within the scope of the disability insurance, the old age insurance and the insurance against death but whose insurance starting date is brought back to before 8/9/1999 (included) with the borrowings that they made according to the provisions of the relevant legislation that allows to move back the insurance start date.

Another condition to be met in order to be entitled for retirement, is to pay enough premium payment days. In accordance, the persons insured within the scope of Social Insurance Institution (“SSK”) will be required to have paid premiums between gradually 5000 and 5975 days, depending on the year where they were first insured. For the insured persons within the scope of Bag-Kur (Social Security organization for artisans and the self-employed) and the Retirement Fund; they will be required to have paid premiums; 7200 days for women and 9000 days for men. Please find the conditions required to get entitled for the retirement in the following chart :

Conditions to be Met by Those Insured under SSK:

Conditions to be Met by Those Insured under[KP1]  Bag-Kur and Retirement Fund :

• How Those Eligible for Retirement Will Apply

As it can be understood from the statements made by the authorities, the employees who are eligible for retirement will be able to apply through E-Devlet to benefit from the regulation. In this way, the workload of the SGK will be significantly eased.

• What Will Be The Influence of the Regulation on Current Labor Contracts

Employees will be able to terminate their employment contracts unilaterally and immediately due to retirement. Also, in line with the Article 14 of the abrogated Labor Law no.1475 which is still in force, employees will also be entitled to severance pay if they certify that they are entitled to a monthly or lump sum payment and that they have applied to SGK or to the fund for a monthly or lump sum payment in terms of old age insurance.

After the entitlement for the retirement and the termination of employment, the employee will be able to continue working with his/her former employer or with another employer to be agreed upon by the parties.

One of the regulations introduced by the law will be the introduction of an incentive for employers who re-employ their employees who have left their jobs by becoming eligible for retirement.

In accordance with the regulation, if the employees who are given a notice of termination of employment due to old age or pension request start working as being subject to social security support premium in the last private sector workplace within 30 days following the date of termination of employment, the amount corresponding to the five-point portion of the employer’s share of the social security support premium will be covered by the Treasury from the date of commencement of employment subject to social security support premium.

As it can be understood from the justification of this regulation, through the continuation of the work in the same workplace  of the employees who are subject to social security support premium and who benefits from the regulation, it is aimed to prevent fluctuations in the employment market and to reduce the cost of social security support premium of private sector employers who employ these insured persons by supporting registered employment.

You may access from here [KP2] to detailed information thanks to the article where we discuss the potential effects of the regulation from the point of the employer.

• Compulsory Retirement Is No Longer Possible for Permanent Subcontractors

One of the other regulations introduced by the law entering into force, is related to the employees who were working as subcontractors in the public sector and who have been transferred to staff positions. With this regulation, the provisions of the Decree Law No. 375, which regulate the compulsory termination of employment contracts of employees who are employed as staff in public institutions and establishments, special provincial administrations, municipalities and their affiliated organizations and local administration unions of which these special provincial administrations and municipalities are members and companies whose capital’s more than the half belongs, together or separately, to provincial administrations, municipalities and their affiliated organizations and will become eligible to retire will be abolished.

You may access to the regulation that entered into force after being published published in the Official Gazette no. 32121 on 03.03.2023.