Totalizationl Agreement USA / UK Pensions
 

Hi,

I'm 39, was working in USA for over 9 years moved back last year. Getting my pension plans in place for 30 years from now.

I called HMRC and asked about how the logistics work for me getting my USA portion of my pension, she was clueless other than telling me i will get a portion of my full state pension from the USA and a portion from the UK.

She told me to contact social security in the USA.

Has anyone been through this recently and could offer advice on what i specifically need to do to make sure i get all the money i am entitled to from both the USA and UK?

Thankyou

Richard

Re: Totalizationl Agreement USA / UK Pensions
 

Have you contacted SSA to get a definitive record of your SS record? Could "over 9 years" actually be 10?

Reason I ask is that 10 years would definitely entitle you to a US SS, and that can be paid in £'s directly to your UK bank when the time comes, anytime after age 62.

Re: Totalizationl Agreement USA / UK Pensions
 

Re: Totalizationl Agreement USA / UK Pensions
 

Its the number of quarters that count. 40. 9 yrs will be nothing if they raise the pension age to 75 as proposed. :frown:

Re: Totalizationl Agreement USA / UK Pensions
 

I believe the totalization agreement only come into play at the time of retirement. There is nothing you can do to benefit from it at this point. If, for example, at the point of retirement your UK eligibility is deficient you could potentially bridge the gap by benefiting from your US contributions. This link may be helpful, especially the info under the heading Totalization Benefits, towards the bottom : https://www.ssa.gov/international/ag..._overview.html

Re: Totalizationl Agreement USA / UK Pensions
 

Thankyou all

Re: Totalizationl Agreement USA / UK Pensions
 

My husband was just shy of 40 quarters when we moved back to the UK. He gets a pittance from DWP here, but SSA used his UK contributions to make up his US deficiency. He also has his SS topped up via my contributions, and (would you believe it), his ex-wife (now a widow) also gets a small SS benefit.

Definitely contact SSA at the appropriate time - whether age 62 or whatever your full retirement age may be. You may get far more from Uncle Sam than from QEII.

EDIT TO ADD - DWP here was clueless about contributions to other countries might affect his UK old age pension. Hubs had also worked in Portugal, and they just said "apply for Portuguese benefits".

Re: Totalizationl Agreement USA / UK Pensions
 

Is your husband claiming SSA as a US Citizen or Non resident Alien? You can do both, im just curious about the latter as this is the course I intend to take. If so, was he treated any differently? Any complications?

Re: Totalizationl Agreement USA / UK Pensions
 

Mu husband became a US citizen in 2010, a year before we returned to the UK. Either way, the process will be the same.