How to Confirm Years of Work Abroad and Obtain the Right to a Pension
Ukrainians who have worked abroad for a long time have the opportunity to count this period towards acquiring the right to a pension in Ukraine. This is especially relevant for those who have returned home after working abroad or are approaching retirement age and do not have the required number of years of insurance experience in Ukraine. The procedure allows foreign work experience to be taken into account even in cases where there is no international agreement between Ukraine and the country of employment on mutual recognition of work experience. At the same time, it is necessary to confirm the periods of work with appropriate documents and follow the established procedure.
How insurance experience gained abroad is credited
The procedure for crediting insurance experience gained outside Ukraine for pension assignment is regulated by the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine Resolution No. 562 dated May 16, 2025, "Some Issues of Calculating Insurance Experience."
The document provides the opportunity to exercise the right to pension provision for citizens who worked in foreign countries, even if Ukraine does not have international agreements with these countries on mutual recognition of insurance experience.
It is important to note that insurance experience gained abroad is used exclusively to determine the right to a pension, i.e., to achieve the required duration of insurance experience.
Does foreign work experience affect the pension amount
Periods of work abroad can help a person meet the requirement for the minimum number of years of insurance experience to retire.
For example, if 33 years of insurance experience are required to receive a pension at age 60, a person with 25 years of experience in Ukraine and 8 years of work abroad will be entitled to a pension.
At the same time, foreign work experience does not affect the amount of pension payments unless otherwise provided by international agreements between Ukraine and specific countries.
What documents are needed to confirm work experience abroad
To credit periods of work outside Ukraine, documents issued by competent authorities of another country must be attached to the pension application, confirming:
- the periods of the person's work;
- the inclusion of these periods in the insurance experience according to the legislation of the country of employment.
As confirmation, the following may also be used:
- employment contracts;
- pay slips;
- employer certificates;
- income declarations and other documents confirming employment activity.
Document legalization: what to consider
Documents issued abroad are recognized as valid in Ukraine provided they are legalized, unless otherwise stipulated by international agreements.
Information about the legalization procedure can be obtained on the official pages of Ukrainian diplomatic missions in the country where the relevant documents were issued.
What to do if documents are missing
If a citizen cannot independently provide the necessary documents or the submitted information is incomplete or requires clarification, the territorial body of the Pension Fund of Ukraine within five working days contacts the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine.
In this case, the MFA sends requests through diplomatic channels to the competent authorities of the foreign country to obtain the necessary information.
After receiving a response, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs forwards the information to the territorial body of the Pension Fund no later than five working days, which credits the confirmed periods of work abroad to the insurance experience in calendar calculation.
When is a pension application considered submitted
If the confirming documents arrive more than three months after the pension application was submitted, the date of receipt of such documents will be considered the date of application acceptance.
If the necessary confirmations are received before the person applies for a pension, the Pension Fund body must notify the citizen of the need to submit an application for pension payments.
Why confirmation of foreign work experience is needed
Confirming documents allow official recognition of a person's employment carried out in different countries and legal systems. Thanks to this, citizens can exercise their right to social protection and pension provision in Ukraine even after many years of work abroad.
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