How to Get Your German Pension Contributions Back When You Leave Germany

You worked in Germany, you paid into the state pension every month, and now you are leaving for good. Many non-EU expats can get part of that money back. Here is how the Beitragserstattung (refund of pension contributions) works and how to apply.

Check first if you qualify

The refund is in § 210 SGB VI, the pension law. For people who leave Germany, these points matter:

1. You are no longer in the German pension system. You do not work in Germany anymore and you are not forced to pay in.
2. You have no right to pay in voluntarily. This is the key point. Germans can always pay voluntarily, so they cannot get a refund this way. EU, EEA and Swiss citizens usually cannot either.
3. 24 calendar months have passed since your last compulsory contribution, and you did not start paying into the German system again in between.
4. Your country may have its own rules. Germany has social security agreements with some countries, for example the USA, Canada, Australia and India. For these, the result depends on the agreement. The Deutsche Rentenversicherung (DRV, the German pension insurance) says in its own FAQ that a US citizen with five or more years of German contributions cannot get a refund and gets a German pension later instead.

If you are not sure about your case, call the free DRV service line: 0800 1000 4800.

What you get back

You get back only your own share, the half that was taken from your salary. The half your employer paid stays with the DRV. You do not get interest. As a rough guide, your share was about 9.3% of your gross salary, up to the contribution ceiling.

Before you leave Germany

1. Find your Rentenversicherungsnummer (pension insurance number). It is on your Sozialversicherungsausweis (social insurance card) and on your payslips.
2. Do your Abmeldung (deregistration) and keep the confirmation.
3. Ask the DRV for your Versicherungsverlauf (record of your contributions). It helps you check that all your months are there.
4. Keep copies of payslips and your German addresses. Doing all this while you still live here is much easier than from abroad.

The steps

1. Wait 24 months after your last contribution. You cannot apply earlier.
2. Download the form. For people living abroad, the English version is form V0901 on the DRV website, in the forms package "Erstattung von Beiträgen".
3. Fill it in completely and sign it. The application always covers all your contributions. You cannot ask for only some years.
4. Add your documents. Usually a passport copy, your pension number and proof of where you live now. The DRV only accepts originals, or copies confirmed by an official authority, for example a German embassy. A copy you confirm yourself does not count.
5. Send it by post to the DRV office that holds your account. The address is on your letters from the DRV. Use tracked mail.
6. Answer their letters. The DRV often asks for more papers, mostly in German.

Things to know

1. It is final. After the refund, your German pension record is closed. If you come back later, you start from zero.
2. It takes time. Expect a few months, and a bit longer for a bank account outside Germany.
3. Agencies are optional. Some companies apply for you and keep a percentage. The form is free, and you can do it yourself.
4. Company pension is separate. A betriebliche Altersvorsorge (company pension) is not part of this refund. Ask your old employer or the pension provider about it.

Checked in October 2026. Rules change, so please check the official DRV page before you apply. This is not legal or financial advice.

Sources

1. Deutsche Rentenversicherung: Erstattung der deutschen Versicherungsbeiträge, FAQ (German)
2. Deutsche Rentenversicherung: Beitrags-Erstattung (German, simple language)
3. § 210 SGB VI, refund of contributions (German)
4. Form V0901, refund application for people abroad (PDF via German embassy Wellington)
5. Simple Germany: German pension refund
6. Settle in Berlin: Pension refund when leaving Germany