Overseas and Expat Pensions

Moving abroad, whether for retirement or partway through your career, raises a whole set of pension questions that simply don't come up if you stay in the UK. Will you still get your State Pension? Will it keep rising each year the way it would at home, or stay stuck at whatever rate you started on? Should you transfer a UK pension into an overseas scheme, and what are the risks if you do? And if you've spent years working abroad, is there anything you can do about the gaps that leaves in your National Insurance record? These are some of the most frequently searched pension questions among UK expats, and for good reason — the answers depend heavily on your specific country of residence, your personal history, and choices that can be difficult or impossible to reverse once made.

This hub brings together our guides on the four issues that matter most to overseas pensioners: claiming and receiving your State Pension from abroad, understanding whether your pension will be frozen or uprated depending on where you live, the ins and outs of QROPS transfers and the scam risks that come with them, and how to top up gaps in your National Insurance record if you've spent time working overseas. Whichever stage you're at — planning a move, already settled abroad, or helping a family member navigate their own expat pension questions — start with the guide below that matches your situation. Each guide is written in plain English, with worked examples and practical next steps, and points you towards the official channels — the International Pension Centre, HMRC, and MoneyHelper — for guidance tailored to your own circumstances.