Get your German pension money back

If you hold no EU, EEA or Swiss passport and live outside those countries, you file form V0901 with the Deutsche Rentenversicherung once 24 full calendar months have passed since your last compulsory contribution (§ 210 SGB VI). The DRV then pays back the share you paid yourself, 9.3% of your gross pay for every insured month, to a bank account in Germany or abroad; the employer's share stays in the system. With the form you send a certified copy of your passport, proof of your address abroad, your pension insurance number and your bank details, with SWIFT/BIC for an account outside Germany. The form asks its questions in German and English, every letter after it is in German, and the DRV may take up to six months to decide. With a passport from a treaty country such as the US, Canada or India, the refund usually only works with fewer than 60 contribution months, so check your case before you file; Fundsback files it for you through an external lawyer.

In almost every case, yes. The Deutsche Rentenversicherung only refunds contributions once 24 full calendar months have passed since your last compulsory pension contribution (§ 210(2) SGB VI), and you cannot shorten that period. It starts with your last insured month in Germany, such as your last payslip or your last month on unemployment benefit (ALG I); leaving the country or deregistering doesn't move the start. If you become compulsorily insured in Germany again during that time, the clock starts over. Have Fundsback check your case when you leave anyway. You'll know your earliest date, everything is ready, and the claim goes out as soon as the wait is over.

Your refund is 9.3% of your monthly gross salary, up to the contribution ceiling, multiplied by the number of months you paid German pension contributions. Example: 36 months at EUR 4,000 gross comes to 4,000 × 9.3% × 36 = EUR 13,392. The 9.3% is your employee half of the 18.6% contribution rate that has applied since 2018 (earlier years had slightly higher rates); your employer's half stays with the Deutsche Rentenversicherung. Minijobs and jobs in the reduced-contribution band (Übergangsbereich) return less, because you paid a smaller share there, and citizens of most treaty countries can claim at most 59 months. Fundsback clients receive EUR 12,926 on average. The free Pension Check and our refund calculator apply the formula to your own figures.

Deregistration (Abmeldung) is not a formal requirement for a pension refund, but it supports your case by proving you have left Germany and are no longer contributing to the system. If your German address is still active, it can create confusion during the refund process. Our partner deregistration.de can handle the deregistration step, after which you can move directly into the refund process with Fundsback.