Pension and Ukrainian Work Experience: How Different Countries Count Your Years

You worked 20 years in Ukraine, then moved abroad - and now you’re wondering whether those years count toward your pension in the new country. Or the reverse: you want to claim a Ukrainian pension, but part of your working life was spent outside Ukraine. The answer depends on one thing - whether your country and Ukraine have a bilateral social security agreement.

Let’s go through each country: where Ukrainian work experience counts, where it doesn’t, and what you need to translate to prove your years of work.

Two scenarios: with an agreement and without¶

All pension questions fall into two situations.

With a social security agreement - the country and Ukraine have agreed to mutually recognise insurance periods. The principle of totalization applies: if you’re 5 years short of the minimum Polish work requirement, but you have 15 Ukrainian years - they add them together. Each country pays its own portion of the pension proportionally, but the right to a pension is determined jointly.

Without an agreement - each country counts only its own periods. Your 20 Ukrainian years simply don’t exist from Germany’s perspective. And in reverse - 10 years in Sweden won’t automatically count toward a Ukrainian pension.

As of 2026, Ukraine has social security agreements with the following EU countries: Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Portugal, Spain, Italy. With most large Western countries - Germany, France, Austria, Sweden, Netherlands - there is no agreement.

Poland: ZUS counts both work periods¶

Poland is the most common situation for Ukrainians. The agreement between Ukraine and Poland has been in effect since 2012, and the mechanism works like this:

If you officially work in Poland and pay contributions to ZUS, your Polish and Ukrainian insurance periods are combined to determine pension eligibility. Women need a minimum of 20 total years, men 25. Retirement age: 60 and 65 respectively.

So: if you have 8 years of Polish contributions and 15 Ukrainian years - you’ve already crossed the threshold for a woman. But both systems pay separately: ZUS pays for Polish years, the Ukrainian Pension Fund pays for Ukrainian years.

As ZUS explains in its official guide for Ukrainian citizens:

If work periods in Poland are insufficient to acquire the right to a pension, work periods acquired in Ukraine will be taken into account when establishing the right to a Polish pension. However, this does not affect the amount of the Polish pension.

Documents for ZUS from Ukraine: - Work record book (trудова книжка) or employer certificates - Certificate from the Ukrainian Pension Fund about insurance periods - Certificate of pension assignment in Ukraine (if already receiving one) - Birth certificate

All Ukrainian documents must be translated into Polish by a sworn translator (tłumacz przysięgły). An apostille is not required between Poland and Ukraine - a mutual legal assistance treaty exempts documents from this requirement. Translation of a work record book in Poland costs 50 to 120 PLN per page depending on the city and bureau.

Important: don’t wait until you reach retirement age to prepare documents. ZUS recommends applying at least a year before your expected pension date, because verification of Ukrainian work periods through international channels takes several months.

Czech Republic and Slovakia: longer process, but periods count¶

Both countries have agreements with Ukraine. For the Czech Republic this is a treaty from 2001; Slovakia also has an active agreement.

The Czech system (ČSSZ - Česká správa sociálního zabezpečení) independently requests confirmation of Ukrainian periods from the Ukrainian Pension Fund when reviewing a pension application - you don’t need to initiate anything yourself. But you still need to provide supporting documents from Ukraine.

The retirement age in the Czech Republic is gradually increasing - as of 2026 it’s 64-65 for men depending on birth year, similar figures for women. Minimum insurance period is 35 years (or 30 for early retirement).

Documents for ČSSZ: - Work record book with Czech translation - Employer certificates with translation - Certificate from the Ukrainian Pension Fund

Translation must be from a soudní tlumočník (sworn/court translator). No apostille needed - the legal assistance agreement between Czech Republic and Ukraine exempts documents.

Spain, Portugal, Bulgaria, Baltic states¶

All these countries have agreements with Ukraine and apply a similar proportional principle. Each country pays its portion of the pension independently.

Spain (INSS) requires document translation into Spanish from a traductor jurado (sworn translator). An apostille for documents between Spain and Ukraine is mandatory - the legal assistance agreement does not cover exemption from legalisation here.

Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania are exempt from apostille under their legal assistance agreements with Ukraine.

Germany and France: Ukrainian work experience doesn’t count¶

This is the biggest problem for those who have moved to these countries. There is no social security agreement between Ukraine and Germany. Same with France. No agreement exists with Austria, Sweden, Netherlands, Denmark, Finland, or Norway either.

What this means in practice:

• Your years of work in Ukraine don’t affect your right to a German pension and don’t increase its amount
• Deutsche Rentenversicherung counts only contributions paid in Germany
• The minimum to receive any German pension at all is 5 years of German insurance (Wartezeit)
• If you have fewer than 5 years - you can either wait until you’ve accumulated 5, or get your contributions refunded as a lump sum upon reaching age 65

One Ukrainian living in Berlin shared this experience on an expats forum:

I worked 22 years as an accountant in Kharkiv, then moved to Berlin in 2022. In 3 years here I’ve accumulated just over 3 years of contributions, with 15 more years to retirement age. I asked Deutsche Rentenversicherung - they said Ukrainian years aren’t counted at all, only Berlin contributions will be calculated. At least there’s still time.

So if you’re in Germany - pension planning requires a completely different approach: count only years in Germany, and separately gather documents for the Ukrainian Pension Fund for your Ukrainian pension entitlement.

The reverse situation: foreign work experience for Ukrainian pension¶

Since 2024, the situation has also changed in the other direction. Law No. 3674-IX and Cabinet Resolution No. 562 from 2025 allow foreign work periods to be counted for pension eligibility in Ukraine - even without a bilateral agreement with the relevant country.

This means if you officially worked in Germany and paid contributions, those years can count in Ukraine for determining whether you have the right to a pension at all, but won’t affect the pension amount - that’s calculated only from Ukrainian contributions.

Documents for the Ukrainian Pension Fund to credit foreign work periods: - Official certificate from Deutsche Rentenversicherung (Versicherungsverlauf) about insurance periods - Employer records about salary and employment periods - Employment contracts - Notarially certified translation into Ukrainian - Apostille (if the relevant country has no legal assistance treaty with Ukraine)

As the Ukrainian Pension Fund states in its guidance:

To credit insurance periods acquired abroad, official documents from competent authorities of the foreign state must be provided, translated into Ukrainian.

For Poland, Czech Republic and most countries with agreements - no apostille needed. For Germany, France - apostille on the Versicherungsverlauf is mandatory.

Which documents to translate and how¶

Regardless of direction (you want a pension abroad or in Ukraine), the document package is similar:

To prove work periods: - Work record book (трудова книжка) - full translation of all pages with entries - Employer certificates (if no work record book or entries are incomplete) - Certificate from the Pension Fund about insurance periods

Personal documents: - Birth certificate - Marriage certificate / name change document (if your name differs across documents)

Translation requirements by country:

The work record book is a document with specific translation challenges. It contains company names, job titles, order numbers with abbreviations - and the translator needs to convey everything precisely, including “in accordance with order No. ___”. A typical work record book runs 8-15 pages, with translation costing €40 to €100 in EU countries depending on location.

Tip: if you changed your surname after marriage or divorce, prepare all name change certificates and their translations - pension authorities check very carefully that the same person appears across all documents.

FAQ¶

Can I receive two pensions - Polish and Ukrainian?¶

Yes, if you have insurance periods in both Poland and Ukraine, you’re entitled to payments from both pension systems. ZUS pays for Polish years, the Ukrainian Pension Fund for Ukrainian years. These are two separate payments, and one doesn’t cancel the other.

Do I need to appear in person at ZUS or ČSSZ?¶

Pension applications can be submitted in person or through electronic services (in Poland, through the ZUS platform). You attach the document package - originals or notarially certified copies. The pension authority itself requests confirmation from foreign institutions - you don’t need to write to anyone yourself.

How long does ZUS take to verify Ukrainian work periods?¶

Under the agreement norms - up to 6 months. In practice usually 3-4 months. So it’s worth submitting documents well in advance, not waiting until your birthday.

What if I don’t have a work record book - it’s still in Ukraine or lost?¶

Work periods can be proved with alternative documents: employer certificates, archive records, extracts from the Pension Fund about paid contributions. The Ukrainian Pension Fund issues a certificate about insurance periods - this is typically the easiest document to obtain and the most authoritative.

I worked in the USSR before 1992 - do those years count?¶

Yes. Work periods in the territory of former Soviet republics before 1992 typically count under special rules or bilateral agreements. Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, and Baltic states have relevant provisions. Documents: archive certificate from the enterprise or the Central State Historical Archive of Ukraine (ЦДІАК).

Will Deutsche Rentenversicherung credit Ukrainian years once an agreement is signed?¶

There is no Ukraine-Germany agreement yet, and negotiations are ongoing. When or if one will be signed is unknown. Discussions at government level are happening - keep an eye on the news.

How do I order an official Versicherungsverlauf from Deutsche Rentenversicherung?¶

Online at drv.de, or in writing. The document is issued free of charge and covers all insurance periods recorded in the system. You then need a Ukrainian translation with apostille for submission to the Ukrainian Pension Fund.

If you have documents from several countries - compile them into one package and sort chronologically. Pension authorities appreciate order, and if your work history doesn’t have gaps in the documentation - the process moves much faster.