Leaving Germany: What Happens to Your Pensions? An Expat FAQ

One thing that becomes crystal clear when reading the previous parts of this guide is that the German system is (surprise, surprise) not that simple. Each of the products has its own rules, limitations and exceptions. For expats, this is often even more complex: first, you need to understand it all, which is already not easy. Second, you need to understand what it would mean to you, and how to plan for different scenarios and what-ifs that are unique to expats: What if I only moved to Germany when I was 40? What happens to my pensions if I work here for 5 or 10 years and then leave? Should I even consider opening an Altersvorsorgedepot if I'm not sure I'll stay here forever?

I tried to cover the most common scenarios and questions that relate specifically to expats and their unique situation:

The state pension

What is the minimum period required to be eligible for a German state pension?

You need 5 years (60 months) of qualifying periods for a regular old-age pension, the allgemeine Wartezeit. More than just employment counts: periods of unemployment benefit (ALG I), child-rearing periods (the first three years after a child’s birth are credited as contribution periods), and voluntary contributions.

Do years worked in other countries count towards the five years?

Yes. Periods in the EU, the EEA, Switzerland and treaty countries can be combined with German ones, so even a few months of German contributions can produce a German pension. At the time of writing, the treaty countries are Albania, Australia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Brazil, Canada/Quebec, Chile, Israel, Japan, Kosovo, Montenegro, Morocco, North Macedonia, the Philippines, Serbia, South Korea, Tunisia, Turkey, Uruguay and the USA.

If my years in different countries are combined, do I get one combined pension?

No. Combining periods doesn’t merge the pensions. Each country pays only for the periods under its own law. Someone with 3 years in Germany and 30 in the US gets a small German pension plus a US pension, not one combined pension.

What happens if I only work in Germany for four years and then leave?

It depends on your citizenship and where you move. Your contributions don’t expire: German periods remain countable indefinitely, no matter how short. Beyond that, there are three scenarios:

• You later reach the 5-year minimum through another EU or treaty country: you get a small German pension at retirement age.
• You top up voluntarily: Germans can pay voluntary contributions from anywhere in the world, and non-EU nationals living in an EU country can too, if they’ve paid at least one German contribution. A year of voluntary contributions closes the gap.
• You get your contributions refunded: see the next question.

Can I get my pension contributions refunded when I leave Germany?

Only if all three conditions are met:

• you’re no longer compulsorily insured;
• you’re not entitled to voluntary insurance; and
• 24 months have passed since your last contribution.

In practice, this mainly applies to non-EU nationals who move outside the EU. Only your half (9.3%) comes back, without interest; the employer’s share doesn’t. All future pension rights are lost.

Why can’t EU citizens or Americans get a refund?

Because they are entitled to pay voluntary contributions, or are covered by a treaty, which rules out a refund. If they never reach 5 years through combined or voluntary periods, those 4 years produce nothing. In that case, it’s worth doing the math: one year of voluntary contributions might be worth paying, to turn those 4 years into a pension.

What happens if I work in Germany for 15 years and then leave?

You get a German pension, paid abroad. You’ve met the 5-year requirement, so at retirement age you apply and the DRV pays the pension into your account abroad. The DRV confirms that a refund is then no longer possible: the entitlement becomes a pension from the standard retirement age.

How are my pension points calculated each year?

Per calendar year: your contributory earnings divided by that year’s average gross salary (Durchschnittsentgelt), which is €51,944 in 2026. There’s no carry-over: a missed or low-income year can’t be made up by a later high-income year. Voluntary contributions can only be paid for a limited time after the year they cover.

Is there a maximum number of pension points per year?

Yes, set indirectly by the contribution ceiling (Beitragsbemessungsgrenze). Income above it earns no points. For 2026: €101,400 ÷ €51,944 ≈ 1.95 points. It lands near 2 every year because the ceiling is roughly twice the average wage, but it’s slightly different each year.

Do high earners pay less into the state pension?

Relative to their salary, yes. Contributions are only charged on salary up to the contribution ceiling, for both you and your employer. If, for example, you earn three times the average salary, your contribution is around 6% of your salary from you and another 6% from your employer, compared with the standard 9.3% each. Your net salary is relatively higher as a result.

It looks like an advantage, and it partly is. But income above the ceiling earns no pension, so your future state pension replaces an even smaller share of your salary, and your pension gap is even bigger. You keep more of your salary as net income, which makes it all the more important to invest those amounts yourself.

Company pension (bAV)

Do I keep my company pension if I leave my employer or Germany?

Your own contributions, made through salary conversion, are yours from day one. Your employer’s voluntary contributions become yours once you’re at least 21 and the pension promise has existed for three years. Moving abroad doesn’t change this: your vested entitlement stays with the pension provider and is paid out at retirement age, wherever you live.

Do I have to pay back tax or social security savings if I leave Germany?

No. Unlike Riester or the Altersvorsorgedepot, a company pension has no clawback. The savings you had while paying in remain yours.

Can I take my company pension with me to a new employer abroad?

No. The legal transfer right only applies to a new employer in Germany, within one year of leaving. Abroad, your options are to leave the contract in place until retirement or, for many direct insurance contracts, to continue it with your own money, without tax or social security advantages.

Can I cash out my company pension when I leave?

Generally not. There are three exceptions:

• Small entitlements: your employer may pay you out if the expected pension is no more than €59.33 a month (€7,119 as a lump sum, 2026 values).
• A new job in another EU country: if you start one and tell your former employer within three months, they can’t cash you out without your consent.
• A state pension refund: if your German state pension contributions have been refunded, you have the right to demand a cash-out of your company pension too.

How is my company pension taxed if I live abroad when I retire?

It depends on the tax treaty between Germany and your new country. Many treaties give the taxing right to the country you live in. Some newer ones allow Germany to tax pensions built from tax-free contributions. German health and long-term care contributions only apply if you’re insured in the German statutory system, which is usually not the case if you live abroad.

Private pension insurance

What happens to my private pension insurance if I leave Germany?

Nothing, legally. There’s no state subsidy, so there’s nothing to repay. You can keep paying, stop paying and keep the contract (beitragsfrei stellen), or cancel it.

Should I cancel it before I leave?

Check the surrender value first. Acquisition costs are usually deducted in the first five years, so cancelling early often returns less than you paid in. Also check whether your insurer can keep serving you in your new country: some, for example, can’t accept further contributions from customers living in the US.

How are payouts taxed if I live abroad?

It depends on whether you take a lifelong pension or a lump sum, and on the tax treaty with your new country. The favourable German rules, under which only part of the pension or only half the gain is taxed, may not apply. Your new country taxes the payout under its own rules.

Altersvorsorgedepot

What happens to my Altersvorsorgedepot if I move outside the EU?

While you’re still saving, nothing. There’s no repayment and nothing to report. The depot keeps growing, but you stop receiving new allowances, because you’re no longer insured in the German state pension. You can pause it, keep paying in without a subsidy, or move it to another provider.

When do I have to repay the allowances?

If you live outside the EU or EEA once payouts begin, or if a tax treaty treats you as resident outside it. Based on the wording of the rule, this also seems to apply if you only move away after payouts have started. Then all allowances and tax benefits have to be repaid in full.

How is the money repaid?

Normally your provider withholds the amount and passes it on to the authority that manages the allowances. Whatever the provider can’t withhold, you have to pay yourself within a month of receiving the repayment notice. The old option of repaying it gradually, at 15% of each payout, was abolished in 2023. A deferral is now only possible in cases of genuine hardship, and with interest.

Do I lose my investment gains too?

No. Only the allowances and tax benefits are repaid. The investment gains stay yours, including the gains earned on the allowances, and the remaining capital keeps paying out.

How much could that cost me?

For the saver in our comparison (Part 5), about €16,000 in today’s money, roughly 11% of her depot. That’s enough to wipe out the depot’s advantage over a simple ETF portfolio.

Which countries count as EU/EEA?

The 27 EU countries plus Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein. Switzerland, the UK, the US and Israel do not.

What if I move back to the EU before I retire?

As long as you live in the EU or EEA when payouts begin, nothing has to be repaid.

Independent investing

What happens to my ETF portfolio if I leave Germany?

It stays yours: there are no subsidies to repay, no lock-up and no product terms. German taxation ends when you’re no longer a German tax resident. From then on, your new country taxes your gains under its own rules.

Will I have to pay exit tax on my ETFs?

Only on large positions. Since 2025, leaving Germany can trigger a tax on unrealised gains in investment funds, but only if two conditions are met:

• you held at least 1% of a fund, or paid at least €500,000 for units of a single fund; and
• you were a German tax resident for at least 7 of the last 12 years.

The €500,000 applies per fund, so a portfolio spread over several ETFs usually stays below it. If the tax does apply:

• the usual 30% exemption for equity funds still counts;
• it can be paid in seven interest-free annual instalments;
• it lapses if you return to Germany within seven years.

Can my new country tax the same gains again?

Possibly. Not every country recognises the value at which Germany taxed you when you left, so the same gain could be taxed twice when you eventually sell. Check this with a tax advisor before moving with a large portfolio.

Can I keep my German broker account?

Some German brokers close or restrict accounts once you live outside the EU. You can usually transfer the securities to a broker in your new country without selling them.

I’m a US citizen. Does anything change for me?

Yes, and wherever you live. The US taxes its citizens worldwide and treats EU-based funds, including typical UCITS ETFs, as “passive foreign investment companies”, taxed under punitive rules. US citizens in Germany need a different investment setup from everyone else, ideally from the start.

Summary

Each person has their own individual circumstances. Choosing the optimal course of action isn't always easy, and often it's not clear-cut. When dealing with uncertainties and multiple possible scenarios, it's often more about choosing the reasonable alternative, or the one which will keep you more flexible. This is also where individual financial advice comes into play - your circumstances are your own and so are your preferences and choices. There's no textbook answer and whatever you choose has to fit your needs, not anyone else's.

Sources

• Minimum insurance period: § 50 SGB VI
• Refund of contributions: § 210 SGB VI
• Refund application: Deutsche Rentenversicherung
• Cash-out of company pensions: § 3 BetrAVG
• Altersvorsorgedepot repayment: § 95 EStG
• Exit tax on funds: § 19 InvStG and § 6 AStG

This guide is general information, not personal financial advice. Please read the disclaimer.