I. Introduction
One of the consequences of globalisation is that more and more foreign employees are working for German companies, at least temporarily, in Germany.
During this time, they are normally subject to the German pension insurance obligation and their employers pay German pension insurance contributions for the employees on a fiduciary basis.
If the employees wish to acquire a German pension entitlement in the future, this is all well and good. However, the situation is different if you have only been resident in Germany for a few years and have no interest in a German pension. In this case, the question arises for many employees as to whether it is possible for them to receive a refund of the employee contributions paid to the pension insurance scheme.
II Prerequisites
1) The legal basis for a possible claim for reimbursement is § 210 SGB VI. According to this, a refund is generally possible if the following conditions are met:
1. pension insurance in Germany in the past
2. no current compulsory insurance
3. no right to voluntary insurance
4. waiting period of at least 24 months since leaving compulsory insurance
2) In cases where applicants move abroad, it is often only the fact that they no longer have the right to voluntary insurance that is problematic. The right to voluntary insurance may no longer exist at the time of application.
When such a right exists depends essentially on the applicant’s citizenship and the applicant’s new place of residence at the time of application.
Citizenship is important insofar as it determines whether a special social security agreement with another country may apply in the present case.
These binational agreements under international law regulate the exact procedure for reimbursement and other pension-related issues between DE and some other countries.
In addition, there are also EU regulations governing such issues for EU foreigners, Germans resident in other EU countries or third-country nationals resident in the EU.
3) The most important group of non-EU countries with which a social security agreement exists are China and the USA.
Using the example of the US social security agreement, the following will show when any claims for reimbursement are likely to be successful.
There is a social security agreement with the USA (SVA-USA). Art. 20 of the SVA-USA refers to the Final Protocol to the SVA-USA, which in turn explains two cases in SP No. 7b to the SVA-USA in which US citizens are entitled to voluntary insurance. This is the case if:
– there is a previous insurance period of at least 60 months in DE
or
– In the case of residence/habitual residence in the EU and a previous contribution of at least one month in DE (Regulation (EU) No. 1231/210, so-called third country regulation/insurance authorisation under EU law).
If one of these cases applies, a US citizen or third-country national from a country with a social security agreement would have the right to voluntary insurance in Germany.
Conversely, the claim for reimbursement is therefore only possible for employees who have paid into the German pension insurance scheme for less than 5 years and whose place of residence is outside the EU at the time of application.
If, on the other hand, you are still resident within the EU, a single month of contributions is sufficient to obtain the right to voluntary insurance. A refund is then excluded for the US American.
However, there may be other reasons for entitlement in this case.
III. conclusion
A claim for reimbursement is generally only possible for third-country nationals who are not EU/EEA citizens, British or Swiss.
A further prerequisite is usually a transfer of residence to a country that is not part of the EU.
However, there are also constellations in which a claim may exist despite the existence of the above-mentioned cases. Each case is individual in this respect and requires a detailed examination.
If you have decided in principle to apply for reimbursement, we will be happy to check the prospects of success of a possible application for you and support you in calculating, preparing and submitting the application.
