Social Security Abroad: Benefits, Credits, Totalization
Reviewed by the Fairlight Accounting cross-border tax team — U.S. & Canadian Tax Desks
U.S. Social Security for expats covers three separate questions: whether you can receive benefits while living abroad, whether work abroad earns U.S. credits, and whether you must pay into both the U.S. and the local system. Totalization agreements — bilateral Social Security treaties — change the answers in the countries that have them.
On this page
Can I collect U.S. Social Security while living abroad?
In most countries, yes. U.S. citizens can receive retirement, disability, and survivor benefits almost anywhere in the world, deposited to a U.S. or many foreign bank accounts. A small number of countries are excluded by U.S. law, and payments to non-citizen beneficiaries abroad have additional residence conditions. Benefits remain taxable on the U.S. return under the normal rules; whether the local country also taxes them depends on the treaty's Social Security article.
Do I keep earning U.S. credits if I work abroad?
Only if you are paying U.S. Social Security tax. That happens when you work for a U.S. employer (or an affiliate that has elected coverage), when you are self-employed and pay U.S. self-employment tax, or when a totalization agreement assigns your coverage to the U.S. Working for a foreign employer and paying only into the local system earns no U.S. credits — but may earn local credits that a totalization agreement can later combine with your U.S. record.
What is a totalization agreement?
An agreement between the U.S. and another country that does two things:
- Assigns coverage to one country so the same work isn't taxed by both Social Security systems. Typically, employees sent abroad temporarily stay covered at home for up to five years; longer assignments and local hires are covered where they work.
- Combines credits across the two systems so that someone who split a career between countries can qualify for a benefit in one or both, even if neither record alone is long enough. Each country then pays a benefit proportional to the credits earned there.
The U.S. has these agreements with about thirty countries, mostly in Europe plus Canada, Australia, Japan, South Korea, Brazil, Chile, and Uruguay. Notably absent: Israel, the United Arab Emirates, Singapore, Panama, Paraguay, Ukraine, and Cyprus.
Will I pay Social Security tax twice?
In a totalization country, no — you obtain a certificate of coverage showing which system you belong to, and the other country exempts you. Without an agreement, double contribution is possible: a self-employed American in a non-agreement country owes U.S. self-employment tax on net profit and whatever the local system requires. The foreign earned income exclusion does not remove self-employment tax, and foreign social contributions are not creditable against it.
How does working abroad affect my benefit amount?
Years with no U.S. earnings count as zeros in the thirty-five-year benefit calculation, which lowers the monthly amount. Separately, the Windfall Elimination Provision, which used to reduce benefits for people who also received a foreign pension from non-covered work, was repealed in early 2025 under the Social Security Fairness Act — so a foreign pension no longer cuts your U.S. benefit on that basis.
What about Medicare?
Medicare does not pay for care outside the U.S., and enrolling late carries lifetime penalties. Expats approaching sixty-five need to decide whether to enroll in Part B and pay premiums for coverage they can't use abroad, or delay and accept the penalty if they return. There is no single right answer; it depends on your plans.
Frequently asked questions
How many U.S. credits do I need to qualify?
Forty, roughly ten years of covered work. A totalization agreement can let foreign credits fill the gap if you have at least six U.S. credits.
Can my non-U.S. spouse receive spousal or survivor benefits abroad?
Often, but non-citizen beneficiaries living outside the U.S. face residence and country conditions that citizens do not. Check the specific country's status.
I work remotely for a U.S. company from abroad. Where am I covered?
Generally the U.S., if your employer keeps you on U.S. payroll. In a totalization country, the agreement may assign you to the local system after a period — the certificate of coverage settles it.
Do I report my foreign social security contributions on my U.S. return?
They aren't creditable as income tax and aren't deductible in most cases, but benefits you later receive from the foreign system are reportable income, subject to the treaty's Social Security article.
Next step
Fairlight Accounting handles U.S. domestic, cross-border (U.S.–Canada), and international tax returns, plus bookkeeping, payroll, and CFO advisory. If you're working abroad and want to know which system you're in, how your credits add up, or how a foreign pension sits beside U.S. benefits, our U.S. Tax Desk maps it against your country's agreement. See pricing or book a free fit call.
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