Can Employment in Germany Be Counted Towards a Pension in Ukraine?
On 22 May 2019, the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine adopted Resolution No. 434 concerning the approval of arrangements related to the implementation of the social security agreement between Ukraine and the Federal Republic of Germany.
Cooperation between Ukraine and Germany in the field of social security is particularly important for people who have worked in both countries. Such international arrangements are intended to coordinate social insurance rights, determine which country’s legislation applies to particular periods of employment and establish mechanisms for recognising insurance periods accumulated abroad.
For pension purposes, one of the key issues is whether insurance periods accumulated in Germany can be taken into account when determining pension rights in Ukraine, and vice versa. International social security coordination is intended to prevent a person from losing pension rights merely because their employment history has been divided between the social insurance systems of two countries.
The social security arrangements negotiated between Ukraine and Germany contain rules designed to prevent simultaneous application of the social insurance legislation of both countries to the same employment. As a general principle, employees and their employers are subject to the social security legislation of the country in which the relevant work is performed, subject to exceptions provided for particular categories of workers.
Special rules may apply, for example, to employees who are temporarily posted to work in the other country. Such provisions are intended to determine which social security system continues to apply during the temporary period abroad and to prevent unnecessary double payment of social insurance contributions.
For pensioners, another important principle is the possibility of coordinating insurance periods accumulated in Ukraine and Germany. Where the applicable international framework provides for aggregation, periods completed under the legislation of the other country may be taken into account for the purpose of determining whether a person satisfies the qualifying conditions for a pension.
At the same time, recognition of a foreign insurance period for the purpose of establishing pension entitlement should be distinguished from calculation of the amount payable by each country. International social security agreements commonly provide mechanisms under which each state determines its pension obligations in accordance with the insurance periods and contributions for which it is responsible.
Another important aspect of international social security coordination is the export of benefits. This principle is intended to ensure that certain acquired social security benefits are not automatically lost merely because the beneficiary moves to or resides in the other contracting state.
The international framework may also regulate benefits connected with accidents at work and occupational diseases. This can be particularly important for employees who suffered an occupational injury while working in one country but subsequently reside in the other country.
The social security agreement between Ukraine and Germany was signed in November 2018. However, signing an international agreement does not by itself necessarily mean that all of its substantive pension coordination provisions immediately become applicable. Entry into force generally requires completion of the domestic procedures prescribed by each contracting state.
Therefore, when determining pension rights based on employment in Germany, it is essential to establish which international social security arrangements are actually in force and applicable at the time of the pension application. The fact that an agreement was signed or that implementation measures were prepared does not, by itself, establish that all mechanisms contemplated by that agreement can be relied upon in an individual pension case.
This distinction is particularly important for Ukrainians who have accumulated substantial insurance periods in Germany. The recognition of German insurance periods, the possibility of aggregating Ukrainian and German periods, and the payment of pensions between the two countries depend on the international legal framework applicable to the particular person and period concerned.
Persons who have worked in Germany should therefore retain all available documents confirming their employment and participation in the German social insurance system, including information concerning insurance periods and contributions. These documents may be necessary when determining pension rights either in Germany or Ukraine.
Thus, employment and insurance periods accumulated in Germany may be relevant to a person’s pension rights, but the possibility and procedure for recognising those periods in Ukraine must be assessed according to the international social security rules actually in force at the relevant time.
