What to do when I have lived abroad?

Your country of residence determines the procedure that you must follow when you apply for pension. Working abroad may affect the amount of your earnings-related pension. Living or spending time abroad does not affect the amount of your earnings-related pension. If you apply for pension from Kela, living abroad may affect its amount. Earnings-related pension and national pension thus differ in this respect.

Report information concerning living and working abroad in Appendix U

When you apply for a pension, you will be asked in the application form whether you have lived or worked abroad. Based on that, you will be asked to fill in Appendix U (Residence and employment abroad).

If you are applying for pension from an EU or EEA country, a social security agreement country, Switzerland or Great Britain, you can apply for that pension using the same application you use to apply for Finnish pension. Appendix U is an essential attachment to your application.

If you are not living in Finland but in another EU or EEA country, social security agreement country, Switzerland or the UK, apply for pension from the pension authority in your country of residence. Your application will then be forwarded to Finland.

If you are living in some other country you can apply pension directly from Finland.