Macron announced the entry into force of the pension reform in the fall

France’s pension reform, which will raise the retirement age from 62 to 64, will come into effect in the fall, French President Emmanuel Macron said during an address to the nation.

“As you know, the constitutional council on Friday encouraged the pension reform to be legal. I, logically, I immediately promulgated this law. The pension reform will come into force in the fall,” he said (quote according to RIA Novosti).

“I regret that no consensus was found on it,” the French president added, referring to the fact that society did not approve of the reform. Thus, the French president ignored the massive protests that have shaken France since the announcement of the pension reform, which also hit Macron’s ratings hard.

In mid-March, French Prime Minister Elisabeth Born announced the adoption of a law raising the retirement age in the country from 62 to 64, Vedomosti wrote. This happened without a final vote in the lower house of parliament. Due to the risk of not getting the required number of votes in the lower house of parliament, Macron approved the use of Art. 49.3 of the constitution, which allows the adoption of a law without the approval of parliament.

On March 16, the French Senate (upper house) approved the pension reform bill in a final vote of 193 in favor and 114 against. The vote took place amid thousands of demonstrations across the country.

According to the government’s plan, the retirement age in France will increase from September 1, 2023 by three months a year to reach 64 by 2030. This increase will affect French people born in September 1961 and later. Also, from 2027, a rule is introduced, according to which, in order to receive a full pension, it is necessary to make insurance contributions (that is, to be officially employed) for 43 years. If a person does not have such an experience, then it will be possible to apply for a full payment upon retirement at 67 years old.