chrisjolly

This has probably been covered several times over but does anyone know if you can claim for any Spanish pension if you have contributed to the Spanish system for 5 years. If so where do I start? Thanks

jonnyx

As the roles are for now you have to contribute 15 years to get a Spanish Pension. But I know that they are working with this issue in Brussels, it might be changed in the future.

EsuriJohn

However I think there is some combination when you have worked in a No. of different EU countries and the longest pays the pension but it is at a higher rate than would be the case for that country alone. Of course it will only come at the retirement age of that country .

Ex-pat

I receive pensions from different European countries. You must claim your pension in UK and the forms ask "did you work and are entitled to a pension from a different country within EU"?

Newcastle sorts your UK pension and contacts the other country/ies where you contributed for your pension. From there it is up to that country to sort your pension.

Your non UK pension will be paid by the country where you paid at their rate. Not on the UK rate. I had to contact the pension service in another country and go through their ombudsman as I waited for 3 years for that pension service to pay me but I got there in the end. I dare say not all countries are necessarily like that.

Fred James

Not true. If you had only contributed in Spain that would be the case but if you have paid in different countries the pensions are aggregated and it is entirely possible to get a Spanish pension after just one year of contributions.

YMF

This eu website has some useful info.
From my understanding you have to claim in the last country that you paid your contributions to.

chrisjolly

Thank you all for your contributions but i dont feel any the wiser. There must be some defintive answer to this but the UK DWP do not have it and when I went into our local SS office they didnt either...so looks like the money that was paid by my employers will be lost forever.

Jontee

I am starting to worry about my 9 years autonomo paid in Spain now.

I stopped working here in Spain last year when I was able to claim my UK State Pension. I cannot claim the Spanish one till 2015 when I reach 65 (unless they change the parameters in the meantime). I am hoping to return permanently to the UK next year. I read the information available on-line and thought it meant that I should make my claim through the relevant authority in the country I reside in at the time of making the claim, so long as I had worked in that country at some time. Maybe I need to make sure of this before I leave Spain as you say the DWP seem to have no knowledge of this.

Oh why is everything so confusing?

EsuriJohn

Have you read and understood posts 4 & 6 and checked the EU website?

Fred James

It's pretty straightforward. One of my friends has a pension from 4 different EU countries and he never worked in any of them for more than 3 years (apart from the UK).

This site seems to explain it in simple terms

http://ec.europa.eu/social/main.jsp?langId=en&catId=860

EsuriJohn

Reread the posts and then plot your own route to the solution.

Jontee

I had already plotted my route: ie. Apply in the country I will be in at the time. But according to Chrisjolly, DWP are not helpful!!

Fred James

I have to say that whenever I have had to contact DWP they have been incredibly helpful and an absolute credit to the concept of customer service.

petew

[QUOTE=Fred James;10265376]Not true. If you had only contributed in Spain that would be the case but if you have paid in different countries the pensions are aggregated and it is entirely possible to get a Spanish pension after just one year of contributions.[/QUOTE

My wife applied for her UK pension about 2 years ago via the spanish seguridad social because spain was the last place she worked (for 6 years) . I have to admit we got a gestor to do it for us. Her UK pension went through OK. She will be 65 in a few months so her (small) spanish pension should start then. That's the theory but she is not going to hold her breath..... A few months ago we did our tax returns via a local spanish assessor. He was quite adamant that she will not receive any pension from Spain. We didn't argue with him but I think (hope..) he was wrong.

petew

Your application should be made to the relevant authority in the country where you last worked. I find it strange that DWP profess no knowledge of this - it was them who told my wife that she would have to apply in Spain.