Your retirement choices
For clergy retiring with pension benefits:
- Normal Retirement: at or after age 65, with at least five years of credited service
- Early Retirement: at or after age 60, but before age 65, with at least five years, but fewer than 30 years, of credited service
- 30-year Early Retirement: beginning at age 55 with 30 years of credited service
- Disability Retirement for total disability
Options for spouse/beneficiary
Unlike most pension plans, your clergy plan has long provided eligible spouses with an automatic survivor benefit equal to 50% of the clergy pension benefit at no cost to you.
At the time of retirement, you may choose to:
- increase your surviving spouse's benefit, or
- establish a survivor benefit for an a second adult beneficiary
Read more about your options for providing for a spouse or second adult beneficiary
Retirement at age 72
You are required by Canon law to retire at age 72 and resign your present position. Any further church work you perform must have a bishop's approval. It is not assessed and cannot be used to earn additional credited service.
Minimum pension
If you serve the church in low-paying positions for many years with your assessments fully paid, you will receive at least the minimum pension benefit.