Interested in Collecting Social Security Benefits Abroad? See If You Qualify

More than 760,000 people receive Social Security benefits while living abroad each year, according to the Social Security Administration (SSA). However, not every potential beneficiary is eligible to receive payments abroad.

If you plan to retire or live abroad, you’ll need to know if you can still collect retirement, disability, or Social Security survivor benefits. The rules vary depending on the type of benefit, your citizenship status, and your country of residence. Here’s what you need to know.

Who is eligible for Social Security benefits outside the United States?

Whether you are eligible for Social Security benefits while you live outside the United States can depend on whether you are a U.S. citizen or a non-U.S. citizen. Here are some basics:

If you are a US citizen

The Social Security Administration (SSA) considers you “outside the United States” if you have not been located in one of the 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, or American Samoa for at least 30 consecutive days.

Generally, if you are a U.S. citizen, you can collect retirement, disability, or survivor’s benefits while abroad as long as you meet the usual criteria for eligibility. However, Social Security will not make benefit payments to beneficiaries in some countries, such as Cuba, North Korea and some former Soviet republics. In many cases, if you reside in one of those countries, your unpaid benefits will be paid to you when you enter a country where payments can be sent.

Social Security Administration Overseas payments screening tool It can help determine if you are eligible for benefits outside the United States

If you are not a US citizen

Non-US citizens may be subject to another set of rules, depending on which country they are a citizen of, where they live, and what type of Social Security benefits they claim.

These rules are in many cases determined by so-called “inclusion agreements” between the United States and 30 other countries. You can find a List of inclusion agreements And links to them on the Social Security Administration website.

If you receive dependent or survivor benefits, you may need to meet additional residency requirements. For example, you may need to prove that you have lived in the United States for at least five years and that you had a qualifying family relationship with the primary beneficiary.

In some cases, Social Security will stop paying benefits to beneficiaries who leave the United States for six months or more, but will resume them if the person later returns for at least a full month.

Keep your information up to date

The Social Security Administration periodically sends questionnaires to beneficiaries who reside outside the United States. These questionnaires are designed to help the agency determine whether they are still eligible. The questionnaires ask for updated information about any work you have taken abroad, marriage, death, divorce, change of address, change of circumstances, and eligibility for a pension not covered by the Social Security program.

Failure to return the requested information will result in the cessation of benefits. You are also required to report any of the listed events to Social Security when they occur regardless of whether you received a survey or not.

Bottom line

If you’re thinking about moving abroad and collecting Social Security, research your eligibility and benefits carefully. Pay attention to the exceptions, including where you plan to live and how your citizenship status affects whether you can collect. Don’t forget to keep your information up to date.