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Ottawa Opens Early-Retirement Portal for Federal Workers, Sets July 24 Deadline

The incentive is a key tool to shrink the public service through voluntary exits.

The budget bill has received royal assent, and with it, the opening of the much anticipated Early Retirement Incentive program. (PHOTO BY HYUNGCHEOL PARK/Postmedia)
People walk past the Peace Tower on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on Nov. 4, 2025. The government launched a buyout application portal for eligible public servants on Friday.

Overview

  • The Treasury Board opened the online application portal Friday, with applications due by July 24.
  • The program is intended to help reduce about 30,000 federal positions over several years through voluntary departures.
  • Departments will decide which applications to approve to keep services running, so not everyone who applies will be allowed to retire early.
  • Eligibility splits by hire date because of 2013 pension changes, with pre‑2013 hires eligible from age 50 and post‑2013 hires from 55 if service thresholds are met, and approved workers receive an immediate pension with no early‑retirement penalty.
  • The budget authorizes about $1.5 billion from a Public Service Pension Fund surplus to run the program, which is projected to save $82 million a year.