# UK Expat enquiring about Belgian pension



## Big-bad_dave (Jul 17, 2014)

Hi,

As mentioned in the title, My wife worked in Brussels the 70's and was wondering if there was any pro rata pension payments that she can claim - as we're both reaching pensionable age and any extra income would be gratefully accepted!!

Many thanks,

Dave


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## Bevdeforges (Nov 16, 2007)

I'm not sure about Belgium specifically, but if your wife worked in Belgium for at least a year or two and had some sort of withholdings taken from her pay for social insurances (i.e. health care and retirement), then there is a good chance she may be entitled to something. OTOH, if she was working for one of the NGOs in Brussels, that is part of a different social insurance system.

I just applied for my French pension, and they asked me to fill in the blanks for all the years that are "missing" from their records. I suspect the UK may do something similar - because many of the social security treaties between countries (especially within the EU) grant credit for years worked in other EU countries and so they need to verify this information. I've received forms from Germany for the 2 1/2 years I worked there and apparently will receive something, though so far I have no idea how much.

You may want to check with the UK retirement office to see how they handle this when the time comes to calculate her pension. Then again, the Brexit thing may interfere with that and you may wind up having to contact the Belgian retirement system yourself. Still, I know someone who worked in Switzerland for only 3 years and when she retired found that she now has the right to 50 CHF a year. Not a fortune, but enough to take herself out for a nice dinner in celebration.
Cheers,
Bev


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