If you work in Germany, 18.6% of your income is automatically paid into the statutory pension insurance scheme. You pay 9.3% of this, the other half is paid by your employer. If you leave Germany, you can get a refund of the pension contributions you have paid into the system and potentially recoup thousands of euros.
For non-EU citizens, a refund may be possible if at least 24 months have passed since your last contribution, and you currently reside outside the EU or the UK. In this blog post, we provide all the information you need, including a free german pension refund calculator and details on how our service can help you get your contributions back.
Key Points
- You can get a German Pension Refund if you worked in Germany for less than 5 years, but must wait at least 2 years after your last contribution before applying.
- To apply for a refund of your German pension contributions, you must fill out forms, get documents notarized, and send them to the German Pension Insurance, which can take up to 6 months to process.
- The refund amount can easily be calculated with our free online Pension Refund Calculator.
Who can get pension refunds on leaving Germany?
The German statutory pension insurance scheme takes a critical view of the payment of contributions, as this means the complete and irrevocable termination of the insurance relationship – and therefore the loss of all pension entitlements.
Anyone wishing to have their pension contributions refunded can expect to claim large sums, which makes the process even more difficult and complicated. The statutory provisions are designed to prevent insured persons from making this decision prematurely. Very specific requirements must therefore be met in order to receive a refund, which makes the process time-consuming and confusing.
“Many people don’t even know that they are entitled to a refund of their pension insurance contributions – this often involves amounts in the four to five-digit range!
– Oliver Frankfurth
In principle, only three groups of people are entitled to have their German pension contributions refunded:
- Civil servants and persons similar to civil servants
- Persons who have reached the standard retirement age but do not fulfill the general waiting period
- Foreigners who have worked in Germany and are emigrating again
But even within these three groups, there are a number of requirements that must be met in order to qualify for payment.
In this article, we would like to look specifically at the requirements for non-EU citizens who have worked in Germany and decide to leave again.
Pension refund in Germany: general requirements
You can have a pension refund in Germany if you meet the following three basic requirements:
- You must no longer be liable to pay contributions in Germany
- The last contribution payment must have been made at least 24 months ago
- You do not have the option of making voluntary contributions to German pension insurance
Whether or not you have the option of paying into the pension insurance scheme voluntarily depends on your nationality and your current place of residence. Deutsche Rentenversicherung divides those potentially entitled into four different groups:
- German citizens
- EEA citizens, as well as Switzerland and the United Kingdom (UK)
- Contracting states
- Non-contracting states
We will introduce you to these in the next section and explain which countries belong to each group.
German Pension Refund – Who is eligible?
Whether you are entitled to a refund of your pension in Germany depends largely on your citizenship and your current place of residence. These factors determine whether you can continue to pay voluntary contributions into the German pension insurance scheme. If this is possible, you are generally not entitled to have your pension contributions paid out. Only those who are unable to continue paying into the statutory pension insurance scheme can apply for a refund of their contributions under certain conditions.
Pension Refund in Germany for German citizens and nationals
As a German citizen, you are unfortunately not eligible for a pension refund.
If you have a German passport, you always have the option to pay into the pension insurance scheme voluntarily until you reach retirement age, regardless of where you currently reside. Therefore, German citizens are usually not entitled to a refund of their pension contributions, which also applies to dual citizenship.
The only exception is if you have reached the statutory retirement age but have not completed the minimum insurance period, or if you are employed as a civil servant.
Pension Refund in Germany for EEA citizens, Switzerland & UK
If you live in a country in the European Economic Area, you have very little chance of a successful pension refund.
EEA is the abbreviation for European Economic Area, which includes all 27 EU countries as well as Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway. Switzerland is neither part of the EU nor the EEA. Nevertheless, it is linked to the EU by many treaties, which means that Swiss citizens are on an equal footing with EU citizens in most areas. The same rule has also applied to the UK since Brexit.
If you belong to this group, you can only claim your pension once you have reached German retirement age. If you are not entitled to a “normal” German pension you can apply for a refund.
The prerequisite for a refund is that you have paid into the pension system for at least five years. From 2023, the retirement age in Germany will be 66, but will gradually increase to 67 by 2031.
If you are a citizen of an EEA country, Switzerland or the United Kingdom, you can also voluntarily pay into the German pension scheme until you reach retirement age. A refund of your German pension is therefore only possible once you have reached retirement age.
Which countries belong to the European Economic Area (EEA)?
German Pension Refund: Contracting States
As a citizen of a contracting state, you have a good chance of receiving a successful German pension refund.
The contracting states are countries that have concluded a social security agreement with Germany.
As a citizen of a contracting state, you are entitled to a pension refund if:
- you have worked in Germany for less than 5 years and now live in a contracting state or non-contracting state
or
- you have worked in Germany for more than 5 years and now live in a non-contracting state
Which countries are among the contracting states?
Pension Refund: Non-contracting states
As a citizen of a non-contracting state, you have the best chance of receiving a pension refund from Germany.
If your country is neither an EEA country nor a contracting state, it is considered a non-contracting state. Non-contracting states include all states that have not concluded a social security agreement with Germany . This means that as a citizen of a non-contracting state, regardless of your current place of residence, it is practically impossible for you to pay voluntary contributions into the German pension insurance scheme. This is why your chances of a successful refund are so high.
You have the best chance of having your pension refunded if:
- you now live in a contracting state. Regardless of how many years you have worked in Germany.
or
- you now live in a non-contracting state. It does not matter how many years you have worked in Germany.
Which countries count as non-contracting states?
All countries that belong neither to the contracting states nor to the European Economic Area are considered non-contracting states. Such countries include Russia, Mongolia, Kazakhstan, all African countries, Iraq, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Peru, Argentina and Bolivia, Mexico and Korea. And there are many more.
How much German pension refund can I get?
German pension insurance is part of the social security system and protects people in old age, in the event of illness or unemployment. If you are employed in Germany, you automatically acquire the right to this social benefit, so to speak. The money that flows into the social insurance system is used to finance pension benefits.
In Germany, employers and employees pay a certain percentage of their gross income into the pension insurance system as an insurance contribution. – This is how pension insurance is financed.
The percentage in 2024 is 9.3% for employers and employees. This means that a total of 18.6% of the employee’s gross income will flow into the pension insurance scheme.
However, you can only have the pension contribution paid out that you have paid into the German pension insurance scheme – i.e. 9.3% in 2024.
The amount of the pension payment depends on how many months you worked in Germany and how high your gross income was. This is because you paid 9.3% of your income to the German pension insurance every month up to a certain assessment threshold (€ 7050).
Make sure you pay attention to the deadlines: if you have more than 59 months of contribution periods in Germany, a refund is often no longer possible.”
– Oliver Frankfurth
Pension Refund Calculator Germany
Before you think about having your pension contributions paid out, you can calculate how much money you can expect to receive. You can do this with our German pension refund calculator, for example. All you have to do is enter your gross monthly income & how many months you worked in Germany. The calculator multiplies the values together and then by the percentage of your gross salary that you have paid into the statutory pension insurance scheme.
Check it out!
How to get a German pension refund in 4 steps
STEP 1: Check your eligibility
The pension payment process is actually quite complicated and lengthy. First of all, you should be 100% sure that you qualify for the refund of your pension contributions. Otherwise, you’ll be going to a lot of trouble for nothing. You can use our eligibility check for this.
If you have not yet reached the statutory retirement age in Germany, you must complete a 24-month waiting period, which begins in the month following your last pension contribution. Please note: Even if you have fulfilled the 24-month waiting period, you can only submit an application once you have left Germany.
Reminder: You are not entitled to a payment of pension contributions as long as you live in one of the EEA states. Switzerland and the United Kingdom will be treated in the same way, even after Brexit.
STEP 2: Application for pension refund
Fill in the correct application form and the additional documents, such as:
- Proof of life and proof of citizenship (since the Corona pandemic),
- Declaration of payment and
- authorization to pay
and have the necessary sections confirmed by a notary, for example. Then have your personal details (passport/ID card and proof of residence) notarized by a local authority or a German embassy.
Even if the embassy is far away from your place of residence, this will speed up the process, and you will not normally be asked to provide further proof. If you don’t want to deal with the German bureaucracy, you are welcome to contact us so that we can help you.
STEP 4: Collect & send documents
Once you have completed the forms, attach a certified copy of your passport and proof of residence. Other documents, such as the deregistration confirmation of your last German address, your social security card or your income tax certificate should also be added.
It is also very useful to apply for proof of insurance from your health insurance company. This record can be used to check whether all contributions made in the past are listed before the actual application for reimbursement is submitted. We recommend that you send your documents with tracking so that they do not get lost, and you have to do the confirmation section again.
Note: You can either send the completed and signed applications to the pension insurance provider by post or hand them in at one of the local advice centers in Germany.
STEP 5: Get your money back!
Be patient. As soon as Deutsche Rentenversicherung has reviewed your case, which can take up to six months, it will send a letter with a “decision” to the address you provided on the application form. This will list the contribution periods and the amount of the payment.
The amount will also be transferred to you automatically. If your bank account is outside Germany, the pension authority will wait a further 2 months after sending the notification before transferring the money to you. Check carefully whether the contribution period is correct! Sometimes it does not cover the entire period. In this case, you should reply or call immediately to make sure you receive the full refund.
Note: Also make sure you reply within the deadline. If the deadline has passed, this legally means that you accept the content of the notification. Even if the notification is incomplete, you cannot make any further changes or request a full refund!
Frequently asked questions about German pension refund
In this section, we have answered the questions we are most frequently asked by our customers. Didn’t find the answer to your question? Feel free to contact us via our live chat or by email.
Can I get pension refunds on leaving Germany?
Yes, you can if you lived and worked in Germany in employment. In that case, you paid 9,3% of your gross salary into the statutory pension insurance every month. You can have this amount paid out 24 months after you have ended your employment and left Germany. You are eligible for a refund of your pension if you are no longer eligible to pay voluntary contributions to the pension insurance in Germany. It depends on your citizenship and what country you live in. Take an eligibility test.
How to get pension money back from Germany
To get your pension contributions refunded, you must meet specific requirements. If you qualify for a refund of pension contributions, you can apply for it. For the application, you must fill out and certify various forms, have your proof of residence and passport or ID card notarized, and send other confirming documents to the German Pension Insurance. The process usually takes half a year.
The address is:
Deutsche Rentenversicherung Bund
10704 Berlin
How many years do I have to work in Germany to be eligible for pension reimbursement?
It does not matter how many years you have worked in Germany. It depends on how long you have not been paying pension contributions and whether you can pay voluntary contributions. Take the eligibility test!
Who qualifies for the Geerman pension refund?
Anyone who has not paid pension contributions for at least two years and is not entitled to voluntary insurance can apply for a pension refund in Germany. The prerequisite is that they do not have German citizenship, have their habitual residence abroad and have no entitlements under supranational or intergovernmental regulations. The application should be prepared before the end of the 24-month waiting period, as it can take several months to collect and certify the necessary documents.
How long will it take to receive a pension refund in Germany?
The refund procedure can be initiated after 24 months without contribution payments. Once the application has been submitted, it takes between one and six months for the German Pension Insurance to make a decision and inform you of the amount of the refund. For a faster transfer, it is advisable to specify a German bank account. If you transfer the money to a foreign bank account, it can take up to two months longer for the money to arrive.
Can I apply for the pension refund online?
It is not normally possible to apply for a pension refund online, but if you use our service, it is possible. We take care of all the processing and communication with Deutsche Rentenversicherung by post. So you can relax at home and wait until the refund is in your bank account.
Can I get a German pension refund after 5 years?
The number of years you have worked in Germany is only essential if you are a citizen of a contracting state. As a citizen of a contracting state, you are entitled to a pension refund if you worked in Germany for less than five years and now live in a contracting state or a non-contracting state. OR you have worked in Germany for more than five years and now live in a non-contracting state.
The contracting states include all countries with a social security agreement with Germany. You can find more information about which countries these are above in the article.
Geerman pension refund – which form?
If you are planning to apply for a pension refund yourself, it is important to find the right form for your application. You can find all the important forms on the German Pension Insurance website.
If you don’t know exactly how to proceed or your German is not so good, we will be happy to help you. We have developed a service that makes the reimbursement process as simple and convenient as possible. We know from past experience that it can be very time-consuming and annoying and in some cases it’s good to have a lawyer on your team.
When should I submit the application for the refund?
In short: early! About three to six months before the end of the “waiting period”
Long: The pension refund procedure in Germany can be started after 24 calendar months. This means that at least two years must have passed since you last paid contributions to the German pension insurance scheme. To speed up the process, we advise you to start collecting the most important documents and filling out the correct forms & applications after about 18 – 21 months.
Once the application has been submitted, it can take one to six months before you receive a response from Deutsche Rentenversicherung. The transfer will be faster if you specify a German bank account in your application. If you want to have the money transferred to a foreign account, it can take up to two months before you finally receive your money. But it will be worth it!
