The number of Finnish citizens claiming a disability pension within the earnings-related pension system has increased in recent years, the Finnish Centre for Pensions (ETK) has found.

Last year, more than 6,900 people aged over 60 retired on an earnings-related disability pension, similar to the 6,700 in 2022. However, 10 years ago in 2013, this figure was closer to 4,000.

A key reason for this is the increase in the retirement age, which means that disability pensions are now granted up to a higher age, ETK said. Older men were much more likely to receive a disability pension in 2023 than in 2022. The share of women, on the other hand, decreased compared to 2022.

Overall, a total of 17,700 people retired from the earnings-related pension system on a disability pension, almost as many as the 19,850 in 2022. Musculoskeletal disorders were the reason for 5,700 new disability pensions, a slight decrease from last year.

“The share of persons with musculoskeletal disorders has fallen slightly because fewer women have retired with a disability pension for this reason,” ETK statistics planner, Joonas Hautamäki, explained.

For mental disorders, the overall picture is similar to that of 2022. The number of disability pensions based on mental disorders in 2023 was the same as in 2022 for both men and women. “The total number of new retirement incidences based on mental disorders has been declining since 2019. But now the decline has come to an end,” Hautamäki said.

In the earnings-related pension scheme, the disability pension can be granted as a full or a partial pension. However, almost half of the partial disability pensions are granted for musculoskeletal disorders. In 2023, the number of new partial disability pensions was significantly lower than before, ETK said.

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