Claim your state pension abroad

You can claim State Pension abroad if you have paid enough UK National Insurance contributions to qualify. 

Get a State Pension statement (external link) if you need to find out how much State Pension you may get. 

Make a claim 

You must be within four months of your State Pension age to claim.

To claim your pension, you can either: 

If you live part of the year abroad 

You must choose which country you want your pension to be paid in. You cannot be paid in one country for part of the year and another for the rest of the year.  

Bank accounts your pension can be paid into 

Your State Pension can be paid into:  

  • a bank in the country you are 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 will need the international bank account number (IBAN) and bank identification code (BIC) numbers if you have an overseas account. 

You will be paid in local currency - the amount you get may change due to exchange rates. 

When you will get paid 

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

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

Delays to payments around US bank holidays 

If you live abroad and your payment is due in the same week as a US bank holiday, it could arrive one day late. This is because a US company processes these payments.