At what age do people become eligible for pension payments?

Most people become eligible to collect their employee pensions at 55 to 65 years old, according to CNN Money. The precise age depends on the plan, because each plan specifies its own minimum retirement age. The minimum for Social Security is 62, the Social Security Administration notes.

As of 2015, the normal retirement age for Social Security is 65 or 67, depending on when the individual was born. Waiting until full retirement age to collect earns recipients higher benefits.

In addition to meeting minimum age requirements for an employer-provided pension, the employee must be vested in the plan, notes CNN Money. Vesting occurs after the person has worked in a job for a minimum amount of time, as defined by the employer. The employee can be partially or fully vested. A partially vested employee receives a percentage of the full amount of the earned pension.