Social Security Payments While Living Abroad

If you are a US citizen and you qualify for Social Security, your payments can follow you to almost any country. The Social Security Administration (SSA) pays retirement, disability and survivors benefits abroad every month, in US dollars, by direct deposit to a US bank or, in many countries, to a local one. The details that trip people up are the reporting rules, the yearly or every-other-year questionnaire, and the extra conditions for beneficiaries who are not US citizens. This guide walks through each one using SSA's own booklet, *Your Payments While You Are Outside the United States* (Publication 05-10137, April 2026 edition).

The short version

• US citizens who are eligible keep receiving payments abroad, as long as they live in a country where SSA can send payments.
• SSA cannot send payments to people in Cuba or North Korea because of Treasury sanctions, and generally does not pay people in Azerbaijan, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan or Uzbekistan, with limited exceptions.
• Non-citizens who do not meet one of SSA's conditions see payments stop after six full calendar months outside the US, and must then return for a full calendar month to restart them.
• SSA can pay into a US bank account anywhere, or into a local account in countries with an international direct deposit agreement.
• Answer every SSA questionnaire on time. If you do not, your payments stop.
• Use SSA's Payments Abroad Screening Tool at ssa.gov to check your own case.

What counts as "outside the US"

SSA treats you as outside the United States once you have been out of the 50 states, DC, Puerto Rico, the US Virgin Islands, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands and American Samoa for 30 days in a row. You stay "outside" until you come back and remain in the US for 30 days in a row. A two-week trip home does not reset anything.

US citizens: payments continue

For a US citizen the rule is simple. You must be eligible for the benefit, and you must be in a country where SSA can send payments. That covers the countries most Americans move to, including Mexico, Portugal, Spain, Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia, Brazil and Argentina.

The restricted countries, as listed in the April 2026 booklet:

• Cuba and North Korea. The Treasury Department prohibits payments to people living there. A US citizen can receive the withheld payments after moving to a country where SSA can pay.
• Azerbaijan, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. SSA generally cannot send payments, but can make exceptions for eligible people who agree to restricted payment conditions.

Other Treasury sanctions can affect other countries. SSA's booklet points to the Treasury's sanctions pages for the current list.

Non-citizens: the six-month rule and its exceptions

If you are not a US citizen, payments stop after you have been outside the US for six full calendar months, unless you meet one of SSA's conditions. Once they stop, they restart only after you return and stay in the US for a full calendar month, from the first minute of the first day to the last minute of the last day. SSA may ask you to prove you were lawfully present for that month.

The main exceptions, in plain terms:

1. Citizenship of certain countries. Citizens of about 30 countries, including Brazil, Canada, Chile, Portugal, Spain and the UK, keep receiving payments abroad.
2. Citizenship of a second group of countries, including Mexico, Colombia, Costa Rica, Argentina and the Philippines, keep receiving payments on their own work record. Dependents and survivors from those countries also need to meet a residency test.
3. Citizenship of a third group of countries, such as India, China and Thailand, keep receiving payments if the worker earned at least 40 US credits or lived in the US for at least 10 years.
4. Residence in a country with a US social security agreement, with special rules for Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Germany, Sweden and Switzerland.
5. A few narrower cases, such as eligibility in December 1956, US military service, and railroad work covered by Social Security.

Dependents and survivors who are not US citizens often need to show five years of US residence in the family relationship the benefit is based on. The lists change, so run the Payments Abroad Screening Tool, or ask SSA, before you move.

How you get paid

SSA calculates benefits in US dollars and does not adjust them for exchange rates. You have three main options:

• A US bank account. SSA can deposit into a US account no matter where you live, unless a payment restriction applies. This is the most common setup, and you can change direct deposit online through a my Social Security account at ssa.gov/myaccount if your bank is in the US. Our guide to keeping US bank accounts and cards working abroad covers how to keep that account open.
• A local bank account in a country that has an international direct deposit agreement with the US. SSA keeps the current list on its website (countrylist6). Payments arrive in local currency, which saves you a conversion step.
• The Direct Express debit card, which needs no bank account. SSA lists an international collect number for card services.

The federal government has been moving payments away from paper checks, and SSA's booklet notes that direct deposit arrives one to three weeks faster than a mailed check abroad. If you still get a check, switch.

If you move money on from your US account, compare the real exchange rate and fees each time. Our guide to sending money abroad explains how.

What you must report

SSA lists 13 events you must report, and failing to report can cause an overpayment that SSA will recover or, in serious cases, a suspension. The ones that matter most for people abroad:

• Change of address, even if your payments go to a bank. Include the country and postal code and the names of family members moving with you.
• Work outside the US before full retirement age, including part-time work and self-employment, and including owning a business you do not work in. Under the foreign work test, SSA withholds your benefit for each month you work more than 45 hours outside the US in work not subject to US Social Security taxes. That applies even when an international agreement exempts you from US Social Security tax.
• Marriage, divorce, adoption and changes in a child's status.
• A beneficiary's death. No benefit is paid for the month of death.
• Inability to manage funds, so SSA can appoint a representative payee. You can also designate up to three people in advance.

Report in person, by mail or by phone, and include the Beneficiary Notice Control number from your SSA letters.

The questionnaire

SSA mails questionnaires to beneficiaries abroad to confirm they are still eligible. Some people get one every year (for example, people 90 or older and those with a representative payee). Others get one every two years, including many beneficiaries in a list of about 50 countries such as Brazil, Argentina, Colombia, Costa Rica, Panama, Portugal and Spain. The booklet sets out exactly which schedule applies to you. In those countries, SSA mails in even-numbered years if the last two digits of your Social Security number are 00 to 49, and in odd-numbered years if they are 50 to 99. Questionnaires usually arrive between May and June.

Complete, sign and return it promptly in the envelope provided. If you do not, your payments stop. If yours does not arrive when expected, contact SSA or your Federal Benefits Unit.

Who to contact abroad

From outside the US, call SSA at +1-410-965-0160. In the British Virgin Islands, Canada and Samoa you can visit a local SSA office. Everywhere else, the contact point is the Federal Benefits Unit (FBU) that serves your country, usually at a US embassy. SSA lists them at ssa.gov/foreign. You can also write to Social Security Administration, P.O. Box 17769, Baltimore, MD 21235-7769, USA.

Keep a working US mailing address and phone setup for SSA letters and logins. See keeping your US mail, phone and two-factor codes working.

Taxes and health coverage

US citizens and green card holders owe US income tax on worldwide income, and up to 85% of Social Security benefits can be taxable depending on your combined income. Many foreign countries also tax US Social Security, so check with the tax authority where you live and with a tax professional. Our US taxes from abroad basics cover the filing side.

SSA's booklet also reminds beneficiaries that Medicare generally does not cover care outside the US, so most people who retire abroad arrange local or international health coverage where they live. SafetyWing is one provider nomads and remote workers use. Check its official site for what it covers and what it costs.

Before you move: a checklist

1. Run the Payments Abroad Screening Tool for your situation.
2. Set up a my Social Security account and confirm your direct deposit.
3. Decide between a US account and international direct deposit.
4. Save SSA's international number and your FBU's contact details.
5. Report your new foreign address as soon as you have one.
6. Note which year your questionnaire is due and watch for it.

Common questions

Will my Social Security stop if I move abroad? Not if you are a US citizen, you remain eligible and you live in a country where SSA can send payments. Cuba, North Korea and a short list of other countries are restricted.

Can Social Security pay into a foreign bank account? Yes, in countries that have an international direct deposit agreement with the US. SSA publishes the list on ssa.gov. Otherwise it pays into a US account or a Direct Express card.

What is the six-month rule? Beneficiaries who are not US citizens and do not meet one of SSA's exceptions have payments stopped after six full calendar months outside the US. They restart after a full calendar month back in the US.

What happens if I miss the SSA questionnaire? SSA stops your payments until it hears from you. Return it promptly, and contact SSA or your Federal Benefits Unit if it does not arrive when expected.

Does working abroad affect my benefits? If you are under full retirement age, yes. Under the foreign work test SSA withholds a month's benefit for each month you work more than 45 hours abroad in work not covered by US Social Security. Report the work.