Preparing for retirement: key steps to avoid common pitfalls

For Anne Louyer, external relations manager at Carsat Bretagne, prevention takes place well before the depot. “The quality of the preparation of a retirement file is based on a shared responsibility, the role of Retirement Insurance is to process and secure the files, that of the insured is to provide complete, reliable and up-to-date information.” Concretely, five years before the planned departure, a back-planning of key stages makes it possible to secure the pension year by year.

At five years old, open your space and track down forgotten trimesters

• First step, free and accessible to all ages, open your personal space on lassuranceretraite.fr. This space gives access to the service “Obtain my departure age updated in real time, and “My diary retirement“, a secure online service which sends personalized information and reminders at key moments of the retroplanning, 5 years, 4 years, 3 years, 2 and a half years, 2 years, 1 year, 10 months, 6 months and 5 months before the planned date. That is, nine milestones so as not to miss any administrative step.
• Second reflex, consult and complete your career statement via the “My career record” from personal space. The most frequent anomalies concern periods outside of continuous salaried employment. “Anomalies of validation of similar periods, unemployment, illness, military service, are among the most frequent categories. Certain rare errors, such as unjustified missing periods, AVPF or periods abroad, have a high unitary financial impact.specifies Retirement Insurance. The “Complete my career and declare my children” allows you to report missing periods.
• Third vigilance, declare all of the resources and family situation. The amount of the pension depends on the exact view of the household’s resources. “Resource-related anomalies account for about a quarter of the total error cost, with a much lower frequency.”continues Anne Louyer. A partial declaration, an omission of benefits or replacement income, a poorly used resources questionnaire, so many traps which can degrade the final pension. All children must be declared, including periods related to education or dependents.

At three years and under, arbitrate the date and file at five months

Three years before the planned departure, the strategic step consists of requesting a retirement information interview (EIR). This free appointment, accessible via the “Make or manage my appointment” service in the personal space, allows a detailed check of the career, advice on gradual retirement, an analysis of the interest of a possible premium and information about the cumulative employment retirement. The EIR helps to objectify choices rather than reasoning on imprecise hypotheses.

For those who really have the choice between several dates, three scenarios coexist:

• First scenario, departurelegal age with a possible discount if all quarters are not validated.
• Second scenario, departure at the age where the full rate is obtained thanks to the required number of quarters.
• Third scenario, waiting for the automatic full rate at age 67, without condition of insurance duration. The decision is almost always made on a financial criterion, after comparing the estimated pension amounts in each case.

Final step and often poorly anticipated, submit the request five months before the departure date directly from your personal space on lassuranceretraite.fr. “Retirement is not granted automatically. The request must be submitted, ideally five months before the departure date, directly from the personal space”recalls Retirement Insurance. Good news, a single step is enough for all diets since the implementation of the single retirement application. On the educational side, free national webinars cover the main themes throughout 2026, live or rebroadcast on the Retirement Insurance YouTube channel.

The services and procedures cited apply to the general retirement insurance scheme. The rules may differ for certain special regimes or liberal professions. The choice of departure date and the arbitration between liquidation scenarios may justify personalized support via the EIR or a retirement advisor. Pension amounts are estimates and subject to change depending on individual variables.