Retirement is changing—here’s what you need to do now

The idea of retiring at 65 is fading fast. Countries like Denmark are raising the retirement age to 70. Canada could follow. If you're working hard and hoping for a well-earned rest someday, that kind of news can feel like a gut punch. But this isn’t the time to panic—it’s the time to get prepared.

Here’s what you need to know—and do—right now:

1. Don’t wait for the government to look after you
Tying retirement age to life expectancy means your pension could arrive later than you planned. That’s out of your control. What is in your control? Saving and planning like your personal retirement fund is your main source of income—not just a backup.

2. Build your own pension—on your terms
Treat every dollar you save in your RRSP, TFSA, or workplace pension like a building block of freedom. Automate your savings. Grab every employer match. Kill your debt. Think in monthly income, not lump sums. If you can create enough to live on, you won’t care when the official retirement age changes.

3. Reframe retirement so it doesn’t feel so far away
Don’t think of retirement as the day you stop working—think of it as the day you stop doing work you hate. You can lighten the load before you stop completely. Shift to part-time, start a side gig, or find work that gives you joy, not just a paycheque.

4. Protect your mental health by taking back control
The uncertainty is real. But the way to fight fear is with action. Create a plan. Set small, steady goals. Learn the basics of money. Even modest changes now can build powerful results over time. You’ll feel stronger—and sleep better—knowing you’re not at the mercy of policy changes.

This is the new reality. Retirement is no longer a finish line someone else hands you. It’s something you build—step by step, on your own terms.
The good news? You don’t need to be rich or lucky to do it. You just need to start.

Watching retirement drift further out of reach is mentally brutal.

The cure? Reframe retirement.

When you hear that the retirement age might go up to 68 or even 70, it can feel like a punch to the gut. You’ve worked hard your whole life. You thought there was a finish line—and now it keeps moving farther away. That’s frustrating. It can make you feel stuck, tired, and even hopeless.

But here’s the truth: you don’t have to wait for someone else to tell you when your real life begins. You can take back control by changing how you think about retirement.

Reframing retirement means this: stop thinking of it as the day you stop working, and start thinking of it as the day you stop doing work you hate.

You don’t need to wait until 65 to be happy. You don’t need to be completely retired to feel free. If you can build a life where you enjoy what you do—where you feel proud, valued, and energized—you’ll feel better now, not just “someday.”

Here’s what that can look like:

• If your current job is burning you out, think about switching to something less stressful, even if it pays a bit less.

• If you love to fix things, work with your hands, or help people, find ways to use those skills in a job that makes you feel good.

• If your health is strong now, take care of it like it’s your most important retirement tool—because it is.

• If money is tight, find one small way to bring in extra income doing something you don’t mind—or even enjoy.

When you stop thinking of retirement as a final escape, and start building a better life now, the pressure drops. You feel more in control. You stop counting down the years—and start making the years count.

That’s how you protect your mental health: not by wishing for early retirement, but by creating a life you don’t need to run away from.

Treat your retirement savings as a private pension

Too many Canadians think of CPP and OAS as their main retirement income and their personal savings as the "extra." That mindset is dangerous. If retirement age increases or government benefits shrink, your “backup” becomes your only source of income. You need to flip the script.

Your savings shouldn’t be the cushion. They should be the core.

Here’s how the average wman or woman can do this, step by step:

1. Pay yourself first—no exceptions

If you’re waiting to save “what’s left over,” you’ll never save enough. Treat your retirement savings like a non-negotiable bill. Aim for 10–15% of your income if possible. Even 5% is a solid start. Automate contributions to your RRSP, TFSA, or pension plan right after payday. You won’t miss what you never see.

2. Max out your tax shelters

• RRSP: Lowers your taxable income now and grows tax-deferred. Especially good if you're in a higher tax bracket today than you expect to be in retirement.

• TFSA: No tax on withdrawals. Perfect if you're in a lower bracket now or want more flexibility.

• Use both if you can. These are your personal pension tools. Max them out like a professional would with a corporate pension.

3. Don't leave free money on the table

If your employer offers a pension plan or RRSP matching, grab it. Always contribute at least enough to get the full match. That’s free money. It's a raise in disguise. Many people ignore it, and it’s one of the easiest ways to build long-term wealth.

4. Think monthly income, not lump sum

Shift your mindset. You’re not just “saving for retirement”—you’re building a future income stream. Ask yourself:
“How much will this account pay me every month at 65? At 70?”
Use online retirement income calculators. Run numbers for different scenarios. If you don’t like the answer, adjust now. Don’t wait.

5. Eliminate debt like your pension depends on it—because it does

Carrying debt into retirement is like trying to fill a bucket with a hole in it. Especially high-interest consumer debt. Make a plan to pay off credit cards, car loans, and ideally your mortgage before you retire. Every dollar not going to interest is a dollar you keep.

6. Learn the basics of investing—don't outsource your future blindly

You don’t need to be a stock market genius. But you do need to know the difference between:

• GICs and mutual funds

• ETFs and high-fee products

• Growth and income investments
  Learn just enough to make informed decisions or ask better questions. A 1–2% fee over decades can erase tens of thousands from your private pension.

7. Build a side stream—just one

If you can, create one small additional income stream. Maybe it’s freelance work, a small business, a rental suite, or selling something you make. Even $200 a month saved and invested can grow into tens of thousands by retirement. Small money adds up fast when time and discipline do the heavy lifting.

When you stop thinking of personal savings as your backup, you stop waiting to be rescued.

You take control. You make decisions based on your goals, not shifting government policies. And when the retirement age rises, as it likely will, you won’t just be prepared.

What it really means to tie life expectancy to retirement age

When a country ties retirement age to life expectancy, it’s no longer picking a fixed number like 65 or 67. Instead, it's saying: “As you live longer, you’ll work longer.” That’s what Denmark has done—and if Canada follows suit, the entire retirement landscape will shift.

Here’s how it would affect you:

Retirement age stops being fixed—it becomes a moving target

If life expectancy rises by two years, so does the retirement age. That means today's 40-year-old might not be eligible for full government pension benefits until 68, 69, or even 70. You can’t count on the age your parents retired at. You may work five years longer just because people in general are living longer—even if you personally aren’t feeling five years stronger.

Your pension benefits will get delayed or reduced

Old Age Security (OAS) and the Canada Pension Plan (CPP) could be paid out later. Worse, if you decide to retire early, your reduced benefits will be even more reduced than they are now. A higher retirement age means steeper penalties for tapping your pension early. The system is telling you to stay in the workforce longer—whether or not your body and mind can handle it.

It hits hardest if you’re in a physically demanding job or low-income role

White-collar professionals may adjust. They can scale back, consult, or work remotely. But tradespeople, service workers, and caregivers don’t always have that luxury. If you’re a construction worker at 65 and the retirement age jumps to 70, what’s your realistic option? Push through physical pain, or retire into poverty? This shift punishes those who can’t afford to wait.

The system shifts risk from the government to you

By linking retirement age to life expectancy, governments offload the financial pressure of longer lifespans onto individuals. Instead of increasing pension funding, they simply delay when you can access it. It sounds like smart policy—but only if you’re not the one stuck working longer with fewer safety nets.

It makes personal planning non-negotiable

If Canada ties retirement to life expectancy, passive savers will fall behind. You’ll need to actively build financial independence to insulate yourself from policy shifts. That means treating your own retirement savings as a private pension—not a backup. The more you save, the less control the government has over when you have to retire.

Bottom line: tying retirement to life expectancy changes the social contract. Don’t wait to see if Canada follows Denmark. Act like it already has—and make sure you’re not caught unprepared.