Can you combine pensions from different countries?

You cannot merge pensions from different countries into one pot as of right, but some overseas pensions can transfer to a UK scheme.

Combining pensions from different countries is really three separate questions: whether an overseas pension can move into a UK scheme, whether years of State Pension from several countries can be added together, and how to keep track of it all. Each has its own rules. Two countries mean two sets of rules, so sorting out foreign and UK pensions together is easier by phone, and an FCA-authorised adviser will contact you with no fee after the brief form on this page goes in.

Can you combine pensions from different countries into one?

Mostly, no, not into a single pot. A private or workplace pension can sometimes be transferred from one scheme to another, but a State Pension is a social security entitlement, not a pot of money, so there is nothing to move. What the rules allow instead is a partial pooling: a foreign pension may be moved into a UK scheme if both schemes agree, and time paid into some foreign state pensions may help you qualify for the UK State Pension.

Which of those applies depends on what each pension is, which country runs it and where you live now. The sections below take them in turn.

Can you transfer an overseas pension into a UK pension scheme?

Sometimes. HMRC's Pensions Tax Manual says a registered pension scheme "may accept a transfer from any type of pension scheme", and that includes a qualifying recognised overseas pension scheme or any other type of non-UK scheme. So UK tax rules do not stop it. Two other things decide whether it happens.

• The UK scheme must be willing. The same manual says DWP legislation may give a member a statutory right to transfer out of a scheme, but "a pension scheme is not required to accept a transfer". Stakeholder schemes are the exception, and only for transfers from other registered pension schemes. A UK provider may therefore decline an overseas transfer in.
• The overseas scheme must allow it. Whether a foreign scheme lets you move your rights out, to a UK scheme or at all, is set by that scheme's rules and the law of its country. Ask the scheme for its transfer-out terms in writing. Only that scheme can say whether it will release your money; an adviser can explain the UK end of a transfer if you request a call-back.

How is a transfer from abroad treated for tax?

On the UK side, HMRC treats a transfer as moving existing pension rights from one scheme to another, so receiving it "is not a contribution". So no UK tax relief is added to money you bring in, with one exception HMRC names: a pension credit from a divorce, transferred in from a scheme that is not UK registered, may be treated as a contribution. For the annual allowance, a defined contribution pension counts only contributions paid in, so a transfer does not use it up; in a defined benefit scheme, the benefits the transfer pays for are deducted, and only extra benefits granted beyond that count.

Tax in the other country is a separate matter. Check with the overseas scheme and that country's tax authority whether leaving triggers a charge. UK tax is due on foreign pension payments if you are UK resident, or were resident in any of the previous five tax years, and GOV.UK says you may be able to claim relief if the same income is taxed in two countries. How it works depends on the UK's double-taxation agreement with that country.

If the pension you are bringing home sits in a scheme set up for transfers from the UK, read can you transfer a QROPS back to the UK first, and for the general scheme see what a QROPS is. Transfers out of the UK to a foreign scheme belong to what happens to your pension if you move abroad, not here. For the ordinary UK steps, how to transfer a pension covers them.

Can State Pensions from different countries be added together?

They cannot be combined into one payment, but time in some other countries' systems can help you qualify for the UK one. For the new State Pension GOV.UK sets a minimum of 10 qualifying years. With fewer UK years, contributions to the state pension of an EEA country, Switzerland, or a country the UK has a social security agreement with may bring you in. That time is added to your UK qualifying years when you claim.

The catch is what the UK then pays. GOV.UK gives an example in which seven UK years plus 16 years in an EEA country meet the minimum, yet the amount "will only be based on the 7 years" of UK contributions. Overseas time can unlock the pension, but in that case it does not increase it. Time lived in Canada or New Zealand, or in Australia before 5 April 2001, works differently: it can be added if you live in the UK, or live in the EEA or Switzerland and meet GOV.UK's nationality and residence conditions, and that time then counts towards the amount too, up to the full rate. The Department for Work and Pensions checks the other criteria when you claim.

Each country then pays its own pension on its own rules. If you lived or worked abroad, GOV.UK says you may be able to claim an overseas state pension before UK State Pension age, and suggests contacting the pension authority where you live, which may notify the schemes in other countries. How the UK pension itself works is in the State Pension guide, and State Pension by country compares systems.

How do you keep track of pensions in several countries?

Keep one list, kept up to date, with each scheme's name, country, contact details, the date you last heard from it and how it can be paid. GOV.UK's pension contact service helps with UK schemes, and its helpline will also take calls from abroad, as described in finding a lost pension. For State Pension and benefits from abroad, the International Pension Centre gives advice to people who live or have lived abroad.

For an overseas pension, start with the scheme or its country's pension authority, and see the pensions dashboard guide for the UK's tracking tool. If you split the year between countries, GOV.UK says your State Pension is paid in one country you choose, not part of the year in each.

Be careful with offers to move or "find" pensions for you. The FCA says pension scams often involve attractive offers to transfer your pot, and that most firms offering free pension reviews are not authorised. Read the FCA's pension scams page before sharing details, and see pension scams here.

Quick answers about overseas pensions

Can you combine pensions from different companies?

Often yes, if your old scheme lets you transfer out and the new one agrees to take the money. The pros, cons and checks are in should I merge pensions.

Can I combine retirement accounts with my spouse?

Not into one pension. GOV.UK says your new State Pension "is usually based on your own National Insurance record", and a private pension is held for one member. On divorce, pension on divorce explains how they can be shared.

Will working abroad raise my UK State Pension?

Usually not, though there are two exceptions. Time lived in Canada, New Zealand or Australia (before 5 April 2001) that is added counts towards the amount, and EEA or Swiss contributions can turn a part-year of UK National Insurance in the same year into a qualifying year. The International Pension Centre gives advice on pensions for people who have lived abroad.

Do I pay tax twice on a foreign pension?

You might be taxed in both countries, but GOV.UK says you can usually claim relief for some or all of it. Whether you claim in the UK or abroad depends on the double-taxation agreement.

Making a list before you act

Before you decide anything, list each pension, check what each scheme allows and what the tax position would be. With schemes in two or more countries, a single FCA-authorised adviser who reviews them all together by phone can save a lot of back and forth; you can ask for that free call-back with the short form here.