Although mortality and disabilities continue to change, according to current trends the generation born in 1960 can expect, at 50 years of age, to live an average of 19 years post-retirement without any severe disabilities, that is to say with no restrictions in their daily living. Due to the increase in life expectancy and medical progress, and in spite of workers taking their retirement later and later up to the generation born in 1975, this indicator of quality of post-retirement life is expected to stabilise, or even improve from the generation born in 1975 onwards.

Women born in 1960 are likely to spend six more years in retirement than men of the same generation, but with only four more years free of disability. These two gaps are expected be reduced slightly for the following generations. When these durations are calculated in relation to a whole life, women still have the advantage over men.

However, these averages hide some major disparities: 4% of men and 13% of women are likely to live more than 30 years in retirement without disability, but 14% of men and 8% of women are expected to live less than five years in this same situation.

The main determining factors of life expectancy post-retirement without disability are life expectancy, change in the occurrence of disabilities and possible changes in pension legislation. Hence life expectancy post-retirement without disability varies by about two years between the scenarios for the highest and lowest change in life expectancy in the future, and by one year between the two scenarios for the highest and lowest future change in disabilities. The gains observed for generations born after 1975 could be lessened if the pension insurance period needed to get a full pension continues to increase and is extended beyond the generation born in 1973.