You can claim your basic State Pension abroad.

You should be sent a claim form 4 months before you reach your State Pension age.

Contact the International Pension Centre (IPC) if you haven't received a letter 3 months before you reach State Pension age.

You can do this by email or phone, or fill in the international claim form. You’ll need the IBAN and BIC numbers for your overseas account.

Check you’re eligible for a State Pension before you contact the IPC.

International Pension Centre
tvp.internationalqueries@thepensionservice.gsi.gov.uk
Telephone: +44 (0)191 218 7777
Textphone: +44 (0)191 218 7280
Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm
Find out about call charges

The Pension Service 11
Mail Handling Site A
Wolverhampton
WV98 1LW
United Kingdom

You've worked in the UK and abroad

To claim your State Pension if you’ve worked in the UK and abroad, send the international claim form to the IPC.

You’ve only worked, lived or are working abroad

You must claim the State Pension through the relevant authority of the country you’re in if you currently live and have worked in:

Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Gibraltar, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden or Switzerland.

Contact the IPC if you’ve worked or lived in a country not listed above.

You’re thinking of moving abroad

Contact the IPC for advice on how your pension might be affected if you’ve already retired and are thinking of moving abroad.

Change in your situation

Tell the IPC if you change any personal details, eg your address or bank account details.

You can only report these changes by telephone or in writing - don't send changes by email.

Getting a life certificate

A ‘life certificate’ is a form the Department for Work and Pensions might send you to check you’re still eligible for the State Pension.

If you get sent a life certificate, you’ll need to get it signed by a witness and send it back, as instructed on the form. Your payments may be suspended if you don’t send it back.

Check the list of people who can witness a life certificate. This is now the same as the list of people who can 'countersign' a passport photo - though they don't need to live in the UK, or have a passport from a specific country.

Returning to the UK

Call the HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) Residency Helpline if you’re going to return to the UK after living or retiring abroad.

HMRC Residency helpline
Telephone: 0300 200 3300
From outside the UK: +44 151 210 2222
Find out about call charges

Contact the Pension Service if you’ve been living abroad and you’re returning to the UK to retire. You’ll need to give them your return date and contact details, both abroad and in the UK.

Find out what the current State Pension rate is.

Your State Pension will increase each year, but only if you live in:

• the UK for 6 months or more each year
• the European Economic Area (EEA)
• Switzerland
• a country that has a social security agreement with the UK

You won't get yearly increases if you live outside these areas. But if you return to live in the UK, your State Pension will be increased each year.

Your State Pension can be paid into:

• a bank in the country you're living in
• a bank or building society in the UK

You can use:

• an account in your name
• a joint account
• someone else's account - if you have their permission and keep to the terms and conditions of the account

You’ll need an international bank account number (IBAN) and bank identification code (BIC) for payments for some countries outside the UK. Check with your bank if you need them.

You'll be paid in local currency - the amount of money you get may change slightly due to exchange rates.

Payment to a bank or building society in the UK

Your State Pension will be paid by either:

• a deposit into any UK bank or building society account
• a type of cheque (payable order) in sterling to your home address

You can choose to be paid every 4 or 13 weeks.

If your State Pension is under £5 per week, you’ll be paid once a year in December.

You spend part of the year abroad

You must choose which country you want your UK State Pension paid into if you divide your time between the UK and another country

You can’t choose to have it paid in one country for part of the year, and a different country for the rest of the year.

You may have to pay UK tax on your State Pension if you live abroad. This will depend on:

• your taxable income
• whether you’re classed as a 'UK resident' or ‘non-UK resident’ for tax purposes

UK residents

The rules are the same as for people living in the UK - you’ll only pay tax if your taxable income is over a certain amount.

Non-UK residents

Non-UK residents don’t pay UK tax on their State Pension but may pay tax in the country they live in. But if you live in a country without a ‘double taxation agreement' you’ll have to pay UK tax and may be taxed in the country you live in as well.

Contact the HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) Residency Helpline to find out if you're classed as a UK resident or not.