site.btaBulgaria with Third Shortest Working Life Duration in EU

Bulgaria ranks third in the EU for shortest expected average working life duration in 2025 (34.6 years), compared to the EU average rate of 37.5 years, show Eurostat data released on Thursday. Last year, the expected average working life duration was shorter only in Romania (32.7 years) and Italy (33.0).

Since 2016, the expected duration of working life in the EU has increased by 2.3 years, from 35.2 to 37.5. However, this indicator differs significantly between EU countries, the data show.  

In 2025, the Netherlands had the longest duration of working life, 44.0 years. Countries in northern Europe follow, all with durations exceeding 41 years, with Sweden (43.4 years), Denmark (42.6 years) and Estonia (41.5 years) ranking highest. 

In 2025, differences in the average number of years of working life between men and women were observed in all countries, as men’s average rate amounted to 39.5 years. It was recorded that men are likely to work the longest in the Netherlands (45.9 years), Denmark, Sweden (both 44.5 years) and Ireland (43.4 years), while men are expected to work the least in Bulgaria (35.9 years), Romania (36.0 years), Croatia (36.3 years) and Luxembourg (37.2 years).

The longest durations of working life for women were recorded in Sweden (42.3 years), the Netherlands (41.9 years), Estonia (41.8 years), Denmark (40.6 years), Finland (39.7 years) and Lithuania (39.3 years). By contrast, the Member States where women are likely to work less than 30 years in their lifespan are Italy (28.4 years) and Romania (29.1 years), followed by Greece (31.8 years), Bulgaria (33.3 years) and Belgium (33.7 years).