Free eligibility check - Pension Refund

Free eligiblity check

Eligiblity check
Refund amount check (Optional)

Free application

Submit application

Find out if you are eligible to get money back.

Answer 5 questions. It takes around 1 minute to finish your eligibility check.

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Please indicate how long have you worked in total in Germany. Please also add periods in which your were unemployed, received social benefits such as Arbeitslosengeld and/or were on parental leave (Elternzeit).

How long have you worked in total in Germany?

Less than 5 years

5 years and more

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Please indicate the last time you have worked in Germany. If you were unemployed, received social benefits such as Arbeitslosengeld and/or were on parental leave (Elternzeit), please indicate the time you stopped receiving social benefits or your parental leave ended.

The last time you have worked in Germany was…

2 years ago or more

Less than 2 years ago

I am currently working in Germany

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Please enter the last month you worked in Germany.

What was your last month of work in Germany?

Month

Year

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Please indicate the month / year when you plan to leave Germany? If you don't know yet 100% for sure, just enter the time you think you will potentially leave Germany.

When do you plan to leave Germany?

Month

Year

4 / 6

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Please indicate your nationality. If you have further citizenships/nationalities, please mention them.

What is your nationality?

Nationality:

Second nationality (Optional):

5 / 6

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Please indicate the country you are planning to move to after leaving Germany.

To which country do you plan to move to after leaving Germany?

Country after germany:

5 / 6

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Please indicate the country in which you are currently registered?

In which country do you currently live?

Current living country:

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BREXIT has led to changes in regards to Social Security matters. Answering this question is key in order to check if you are eligible or not.

Have you started working in Germany before BREXIT (01.01.2021)?

Yes

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Please indicate whether or not you have paid any contributions to the Turkish Social Security System "Sosyal Güvenlik Kurumu (SGK)" within the last 2 years?

Did you pay any contributions to the Sosyal Güvenlik Kurumu (SGK) within the last 2 years?

Yes

Please enter your email address to receive the result of your eligibility check now.

Email:

Yes, I have read and accept the terms and conditions and data policy.

Great! It seems like you are eligible for a refund.

Based on the information you provided we think that you can claim a refund.
The average refund is 9.328 €.

Unfortunately you are not eligble.

Unfortunately you are not eligible for refund at this time. This does not mean that the pension contributions you paid are lost, but you have to wait until you reach retirement age to claim them back.

As European citizen, you are eligible to voluntarily pay pension contributions in Germany. Even though you might not be paying voluntary contributions you could and that fact makes you NOT eligible for earlier refund.

Start the eligibility check again!

Unfortunately you are not eligble.

Unfortunately you are not eligible for refund at this time. This does not mean that the pension contributions you paid are lost, but you have to wait until you reach retirement age to claim them back.

Your situation might change if you move to a country which is outside...
1) of the United Kingdom (UK)
2) and the European Union
3) and the European Economic Area (Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway)

Probably you are planning to move to your nationality country in the future?
Or you plan to move to Switzerland?
Or you have a second nationality/citizenship?

Start the eligibility check again!

Unfortunately you are not eligble.

Unfortunately you are not eligible for refund at this time. This does not mean that the pension contributions you paid are lost, but you have to wait until you reach retirement age to claim them back.

Your situation might change if you move to a country which is outside...
1) of the United Kingdom (UK)
2) and the European Union
3) and the European Economic Area (Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway)

Probably you are planning to move to your nationality country in the future?
Or you plan to move to Switzerland?
Or you have a second nationality/citizenship?

Start the eligibility check again!

Unfortunately you are not eligble.

It looks like you have paid pension contributions for 5 years or more in Germany.
As a consequence you will be able to apply for and receive a monthly pension upon reaching the German retirement age.
Receiving a refund before you reach the official retirement age is not possible.

Start the eligibility check again!

Unfortunately you are not eligble.

Unfortunately you are not eligible for refund at this time. This does not mean that the pension contributions you paid are lost, but you have to wait until you reach retirement age to claim them back.

Your situation might change if you move to a country which is outside...
1) of the United Kingdom (UK)
2) and the European Union
3) and the European Economic Area (Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway)

Probably you are planning to move to your nationality country in the future?
Or you plan to move to Switzerland?
Or you have a second nationality/citizenship?

Start the eligibility check again!

Unfortunately you are not eligble.

Unfortunately you are not eligible for refund at this time. This does not mean that the pension contributions you paid are lost, but you have to wait until you reach retirement age to claim them back.

As German citizen, you are always eligible to voluntarily pay pension contributions in Germany. Even though you might not be paying voluntary contributions you could and that fact makes you NOT eligible for earlier refund.

Start the eligibility check again!

Unfortunately you are not eligble.

If you decide to continue living in Germany you do not qualify for earlier refund. This does not mean that the pension contributions you paid are lost, but you have to wait until you reach retirement age to claim them back.

Your situation might change if you move to a country which is outside...
1) of Germany
2) and the United Kingdom (UK)
2) and the European Union
3) and the European Economic Area (Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway)

Probably you are planning to move to your your nationality country in the future?
Or you plan to move to Switzerland?
Or you have a second nationality/citizenship?

Start the eligibility check again!

Unfortunately you are not eligble.

Unfortunately you are not eligible for refund at this time. This does not mean that the pension contributions you paid are lost, but you have to wait until you reach retirement age to claim them back.

You are an Israel citizen residing in Israel, who has paid at least one contributions in Germany. This gives you the right to voluntarily pay pension contributions in Germany.
Even if you don't pay these contributions, the fact that you are allowed to pay them makes you not eligible for the earlier refund.

If you are planning to leave Israel at some point, this might change and you might become eligible. This depends on the country you are moving.

Start the eligibility check again!

Here a translated reply we have received from the Pension Refund on a similar case:
"Contributions will be reimbursed if there is no right to voluntary pay German Pension contributions. This requirement is not met because the right to voluntary pay contributions exists if you are Israel citizen, residing in Israel. It is irrelevant whether voluntary contributions are actually paid. A reimbursement of contributions is not possible for Israeli nationals with their habitual residence in Israel if they have effectively paid at least one previous pension contribution in Germany, because they are then entitled to pay voluntarily German Pension insurance contributions."

Unfortunately you are not eligble.

Unfortunately you are not eligible for refund at this time. This does not mean that the pension contributions you paid are lost, but you have to wait until you reach retirement age to claim them back.

In a nutshell, regardless of your nationality, if you worked in Germany before BREXIT (01.01.2021) and now you are living in the UK, you are eligible to voluntarily pay pension contributions in Germany.
Even though you might not be paying voluntary pension contributions you could and that fact makes you NOT eligible for earlier refund.

Your situation might change if you move to a country which is outside...
1) of the United Kingdom (UK)
2) and the European Union
3) and the European Economic Area (Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway)

Probably you are planning to move to your your nationality country in the future?
Or you plan to move to Switzerland?
Or you have a second nationality/citizenship?

Start the eligibility check again!

Unfortunately you are not eligble.

Here a translated reply we have received from the Pension Refund on a similar case:
"Reimbursement of contributions is only permissible if the right to voluntary insurance does not exist. For periods after the age of 16, all Germans in Germany and abroad who are not subject to compulsory insurance, as well as foreigners who are resident or not only temporarily staying in the Federal Republic of Germany, have this right. As a British citizen, you are also entitled under EU law, even if you have your habitual residence outside the European Union (EU), to pay voluntary contributions based on the contributions you made to German statutory pension insurance before January 1st, 2021, and thus have an influence on your pension entitlement. Since the requirements for voluntary insurance are met, there is no entitlement to a refund of contributions. It is immaterial whether permissible voluntary insurance is intended or not. Nothing else results from the fact that the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (United Kingdom) left the EU at the end of January 31, 2020 (Brexit). You belong to the group of persons under Article 32 of the Brexit Agreement. This includes persons who have completed insurance periods in the United Kingdom and Germany (in an EU country) before 01/01/2021. These enjoy the protection of legitimate expectations and the protection of existing rights of the Regulation -VO- of the European Community (EG) No. 883/2004 and the VO(EG)No. 987/2009 for all performance-related matters. This also applies to British nationals who have no official insurance periods but completed German (member state) insurance periods by December 31, 2020, and accordingly for German nationals (nationals of other EU countries) who do not have German (member state) insurance periods, but have acquired periods of insurance up to December 31, 2020. The application of Art. 32 Brexit Agreement leads to the further application of Regulation (EC) No. 883/2004 and Regulation (EC) No. 987/2009. This means that Regulation (EC) No. 883/2004 and Regulation (EC) No. 987/2009 continue to apply to the determination of a claim and the amount of the benefit as well as to the necessary administrative procedure. There are no deviations from the application of the law until the end of the transition period on December 31, 2020."

Unfortunately you are not eligble.

We have to manual contact you.

We have to contact you and check your eligibility manually.

Start the eligibility check again

There was an error.

There was an error with your data. Please change the data of the forms.

Start the eligibility check again

You are most likely eligble for a refund in .

The average refund is 9.328 €.
If you want we can already start now and
1) Do the refund calculation for you.
2) Start filling all forms needed for the application. This way you don't forget to apply and when the time comes, everything is already prepared. We will then automatically send your application in .

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This service is free of charge. We will contact the German Pension insurance on your behalf and request your insurance record. Based on the record, we will calculate the expected refund amount. We will send you the record and the calculation. This process usually takes 2 weeks.

Do you want to know the exact amount that you can get back? (Free service)

Yes

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We will contact the German Pension insurance on your behalf and request your insurance record. Based on the record, we will calculate the expected refund amount. We will send you the record and the calculation. This process usually takes 2 weeks.

You don't need to enter your pension insurance number but response time of the pension insurance is quicker if you enter your Pension Insurance Number. You can find the number on your payslip as „SV number“ – Sozialversicherungsnummer or „RV number“ – Rentenversicherungsnummer. Number is easy to identify as it includes your birth date. example: 14050680M042, 5 June 1980 = 050680 (DD/MM/YY)

Please enter your full name

First name:

Last name:

Name at birth (Optional):

Please enter your current address

Street:

Zip code:

City:

Country:

Please enter your date of birth

Day

Month

Year

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You don't need to enter your German Pension Insurance Number but the Pension Insurance will respond quicker if you provide the number.
You can find the number on your monthly salary statement (Lohn-Gehalt-Verdienstabrechnung) you have received from your employer. The number is mentioned as:
SV-Nr or SVNR Number – Sozialversicherungsnummer - Social Insurance number or
RV-Nr or RNVR Number – Rentenversicherungsnummer or Versicherungs-Nr.
PI Number - Pension Insurance Number
Number is easy to identify as it includes your birth date. example: 5th June 1980 = 05 06 80 (DD/MM/YY).
It also includes the letter of your last name. example: Miller = M
It has 12 digits. example: 14 050680 M 042

Please enter your pension insurance number (see further information by clicking on "Help")

Pension insurance number (Optional):

Please enter your last known German Address if you did not enter a pension insurance number

Last address in Germany (Optional):

Last address Postal code (Optional):

Last address City (Optional):

Please draw your signature

We will contact the Pension Insurance and perform the refund calculation for you. This service is free of any cost for you.

For legal reasons, we have to demonstrate that we ask on your behalf. Thus, we kindly ask you to sign here.

IMPORTANT: Please make sure you use the same signature as on your passport..

Draw your signature by holding the left mouse button or by touching the canvas.

Clear

Yes, I have read and accept the terms and conditions and data policy.

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You are ready to send your refund application today:

You can simply fill the form and we will manage the rest for you.

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Please enter your personal details

Pension insurance number (see further information by clicking on "Help"):

Sex:

Title (for example: Dr.):

First Name:

Last Name:

Additional name information (Optional fields):

Name affixes (for example: Dame, count):

Name prefixes (for example: von, van, de):

Name at birth:

Other names used in the past:

Your birth date

Day

Month

Year

Your nationality

Citizenship / Nationality:

Second Citizenship / Nationality (Optional):

Please enter your current address

Street, house number:

Address - additional information:

Postal code:

City:

Country:

Enter your city and country of birth

City of Birth:

Country of Birth:

Last known address you have lived in Germany

Last address in Germany:

Last address Postal code:

Last address City:

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What was the date you left (date of departure) Germany?

When did you leave Germany? (date of departure)

Day

Month

Year

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Question here is if you paid voluntary contributions to the German Pension Insurance. Did you pay besides the mandatory contributions (percentage of you salary automatically paid every month) money to the German Pension Insurance (Deutsche Renteneversicherung)? If you only paid for other private, company or occupational pension schemes known as "betriebliche Altersvorsorge (bAV)" offered by your employer, answer here is "No".

Have you paid any voluntary / additional contributions to the German state pension insurance scheme?

Yes

Please enter the periods you paid the additional contributions.

Working start date

Day

Month

Year

Working end date

Day

Month

Year

Paid additional contributions insurance:

Did you have children which were younger then 10 years while living in Germany?

Yes

PLEASE READ: If you have paid contributions for more then 5 years, the Pension Insurance will reject your application for earlier refund in many cases. Periods in which you were raising your children can also count towards these 5 years and may lead to a rejection of your refund application.

Do you want to claim any periods in which you were raising your children?

Yes

If you chose Yes, please fill the 10 pages form V0800 (download form V0800) and send it to contact .

Claiming these periods could lead to exceeding the 5-year limit and a rejection of your refund application).

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If you have paid contributions for more then 5 years, the Pension Insurance will reject your application for earlier refund in many cases.
The 5-year limit might also include periods you worked outside of Germany.
The 5-years can be a mix of pension contributions, for example 2 years working in Germany and 10 years in the USA.

In a nutshell: If you have paid contributions to state pension insurances in other countries or you simply lived there, these periods could be counted towards the 5 years limit.
Hence your refund application might get rejected and you will not receive your early refund.

Have you paid pension insurance contributions or lived in another country outside of Germany and do you want to claim these times? (READ the Help text as claiming times may result in rejection of your application)

Yes

Show help

EU / EEA: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxemburg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland

Agreement states: Albania, Australia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Brazil, Canada /Quebec, Chile, India, Israel, Japan, Kosovo, Morocco, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Philippines, Republic of Korea, Republic of Moldova, Serbia, Tunisia, Turkey, Uruguay, United States)

Have you paid any social security contributions in a Member State of the EU, the EEA, in Switzerland, in UK or in an agreement state or completed state insurance periods outside Germany? (see help field)

Year

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Question here is if you currently (NOW) are paying contributions to a STATE or Federal or National pension scheme outside of Germany (e.g. to the US National Security). If you are only paying voluntary PRIVATE pension contributions you do NOT need to mention them here and you can answer the question with "No".

Do you currently pay contributions to a STATE pension insurance outside of Germany? (READ Help text)

Yes

Are you currently liable to pay contributions to a state pension insurance scheme outside Germany?

Country currently paying contributions:

Name Insurance Agency:

Insurance Number:

Show help

Question here is about voluntary/additional contributions, NOT mandatory contributions. As example: You worked in Germany but also paid voluntary contributions in the UK, then you need to mention them here.

EU / EEA: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxemburg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland)

Do you currently pay voluntary contributions to a state pension insurance fund under the law of another Member State of the EU / EEA or Switzerland or United Kingdom?

Yes

In which country are you currently paying voluntary contributions to a state pension?

Pays voluntary contributions country:

Pays voluntary contributions insurance agency:

Pays voluntary contributions insurance number:

Are divorce proceedings or proceedings for annulment of the registered life partnership or related proceedings regarding pension rights adjustment pending before a German court?

Yes

Show help

Question here is only about benefits you might have received from the German Pension Insurance. If you received unemployment aid (Arbeitslosengeld) you do NOT need ot mention this here.

Benefits from the Pension Insurance are for example: Benefits on account of occupational disability / incapacity to work or reduced earning capacity, Benefits for medical rehabilitation or participation in working life and / or contributions towards medication and auxiliary aids - also for your spouse / registered life partner / child - or a refund of contributions.

Have you claimed and / or received any benefits from the German Pension Insurance?

Yes

If you only received Unemployment Aid (Arbeitslosengeld) you do NOT need to mention this here and can answer the question with "No"

Which type of benefit did you receive?

e.g. benefits on account of occupational disability / incapacity to work or reduced earning capacity, benefits for medical rehabilitation or participation in working life and / or contributions towards medication and auxiliary aids - also for your spouse / registered life partner / child - or a refund of contributions.

Benefits Type:

Name Insurance Agency:

German Pension Insurance Number:

Have you have claimed or do receive a pension outside Germany?

Yes

Name Insurance Agency:

Insurance Number:

Please enter your bank account information where you want to have transferred your refund.

You will receive the refund amount in your local currency. Learn more on how the transfer is made on your local bank account.

Currency:

US Bank account

Bank name:

Bank street:

Bank zip code:

Bank city:

Bank account number:

Bank rounting number:

Account type:

US Social Security number:

Your current state of residence:

Info: As your resident address is within the USA, we are legally obliged to ask for your US Social security number. We are aware that this is very sensitive data and will treat it with absolute care.

Canada Bank account

Bank name:

Bank street:

Bank zip code:

Bank city:

Bank account number:

Bank institiution number:

Bank branch number:

Your current state of residence:

All other countries bank accounts

Bank name:

Bank street:

Bank zip code:

Bank city:

Bank country:

Bank account number:

Bank BIC:

Bank-State-Branch number (Australia only):

New Zealand: Please enter your 16-digit account number (XXXXXX YYYYYYY ZZZ). The first six digits XX-XXXX is the bank code, which is used to identify both the bank and the individual branch. The next seven numbers ""YYYYYYY"" are used to identify the individual account. Finally, the last three digits ""ZZZ"" denote the account type, i.e. savings, business, checking, etc.

Australia: Please enter your six-digit BSB (Bank-State-Branch) number. This number identifies banks and branches across Australia.

EUR IBAN account

Bank iban:

The Pension insurance requires a proof of your departure from Germany: Can you provide one of following documents?
1) De-Registration document (Abmeldebestätigung) [Preferred]
—OR—
2) Passport Exit/Entry Stamp: Passport page showing the Exit stamp from Germany or Entry stamp from the country you entered after leaving Germany.

Yes

Please upload a photo of PDF of the De-Registration document (Preferred) or Passport Exit/Entry stamp

Show example photo Paspport example photo

Have you started the process with any other Pension Refund Service Provider?

Yes

We are asking this question, because if two or more service providers (attorneys) request your insurance record at the German Pension Insurance, the officials get confused and will not provide us with your document. Only one attorney can be setup in their system.
Answering the question with "Yes" is not a problem. We will contact you afterwards and clarify, who should proceed in assiting you during the process.

Please upload a photo or PDF of your passport that clearly shows your personal data and your signature. Make sure
1) all edges of the passport are visible
2) passport is valid and has not expired

Show example photo Paspport example photo

Please upload a Bank Statement or Utility Bill (Gas/Electric/Water) that clearly shows your name and the address you are currently living.
Internet/phone bills etc are generally not accepted.
Important: Document can not be older then 3 months.

Show example photo Invoice example photo

Please draw your signature and submit your application

For legal reasons, we have to demonstrate that we ask on your behalf. Thus, we kindly ask you to sign here.

IMPORTANT: Please make sure you use the same signature as on your passport..

Draw your signature by holding the left mouse button or by touching the canvas.

Clear

Yes, I have read and accept the terms and conditions and data policy.

Thank you for your application!

We will now start to process your application and send you an email once we reviewed it.

Find out if you are eligible to get money back.

How long have you worked in total in Germany?

The last time you have worked in Germany was…

What was your last month of work in Germany?

When do you plan to leave Germany?

What is your nationality?

To which country do you plan to move to after leaving Germany?

In which country do you currently live?

Have you started working in Germany before BREXIT (01.01.2021)?

Did you pay any contributions to the Sosyal Güvenlik Kurumu (SGK) within the last 2 years?

Please enter your email address to receive the result of your eligibility check now.

Great! It seems like you are eligible for a refund.

Unfortunately you are not eligble.

Unfortunately you are not eligble.

Unfortunately you are not eligble.

Unfortunately you are not eligble.

Unfortunately you are not eligble.

Unfortunately you are not eligble.

Unfortunately you are not eligble.

Unfortunately you are not eligble.

Unfortunately you are not eligble.

Unfortunately you are not eligble.

Unfortunately you are not eligble.

We have to manual contact you.

There was an error.

You are most likely eligble for a refund in .

Do you want to know the exact amount that you can get back? (Free service)

Please enter your full name

Please enter your current address

Please enter your date of birth

Please enter your pension insurance number (see further information by clicking on "Help")

Please enter your last known German Address if you did not enter a pension insurance number

Please draw your signature

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You are ready to send your refund application today:

Please enter your personal details

Additional name information (Optional fields):

Your birth date

Your nationality

Please enter your current address

Enter your city and country of birth

Last known address you have lived in Germany

When did you leave Germany? (date of departure)

Have you paid any voluntary / additional contributions to the German state pension insurance scheme?

Please enter the periods you paid the additional contributions.

Working start date

Working end date

Did you have children which were younger then 10 years while living in Germany?

Do you want to claim any periods in which you were raising your children?

Have you paid pension insurance contributions or lived in another country outside of Germany and do you want to claim these times? (READ the Help text as claiming times may result in rejection of your application)

Have you paid any social security contributions in a Member State of the EU, the EEA, in Switzerland, in UK or in an agreement state or completed state insurance periods outside Germany? (see help field)

Where did you pay the contributions, e.g. USA?

Working/contribution start date

Working/contribution end date

Did you pay additional contributions, e.g. USA? (Optional)

Additional Working/contribution start date (Optional)

Additional Working/contribution end date (Optional)

Have you, after completion of age 15, habitually resided in Denmark or in the Netherlands or, after completion of age 16, habitually resided in one of the following countries: Australia, Canada / Quebec, Finland, Iceland, Israel, Liechtenstein, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland?

I resided in...

I started living there...

And lived there until...

Do you currently pay contributions to a STATE pension insurance outside of Germany? (READ Help text)

Are you currently liable to pay contributions to a state pension insurance scheme outside Germany?

Do you currently pay voluntary contributions to a state pension insurance fund under the law of another Member State of the EU / EEA or Switzerland or United Kingdom?

In which country are you currently paying voluntary contributions to a state pension?

Are divorce proceedings or proceedings for annulment of the registered life partnership or related proceedings regarding pension rights adjustment pending before a German court?

Have you claimed and / or received any benefits from the German Pension Insurance?

Which type of benefit did you receive?

Have you have claimed or do receive a pension outside Germany?

Please enter your bank account information where you want to have transferred your refund.

US Bank account

Canada Bank account

All other countries bank accounts

EUR IBAN account

Please upload a photo of PDF of the De-Registration document (Preferred) or Passport Exit/Entry stamp

Have you started the process with any other Pension Refund Service Provider?

Please upload a photo or PDF of your passport that clearly shows your personal data and your signature. Make sure 1) all edges of the passport are visible 2) passport is valid and has not expired

Please upload a photo or PDF of your passport that clearly shows your personal data and your signature. Make sure
1) all edges of the passport are visible
2) passport is valid and has not expired

Please upload a Bank Statement or Utility Bill (Gas/Electric/Water) that clearly shows your name and the address you are currently living.
Internet/phone bills etc are generally not accepted.
Important: Document can not be older then 3 months.