Your Turkish SGK Pension and Social Security When You Move Abroad (2026)
Key takeaways
- Your record survives. Emigrating does not cancel the insurance days and premiums you have already accrued with the SGK.
- Three schemes. Turkish social security covers employees (4/a), the self-employed (4/b) and public servants (4/c); the scheme you paid into shapes your pension route.
- Bilateral agreements matter. Türkiye has social security agreements with more than 30 countries, allowing service periods to be combined toward a pension.
- Pensions can travel. Under those agreements a Turkish old-age pension can generally be paid to you while you live in the partner country.
- Certificate of coverage. Posted workers can stay in their home system and avoid double contributions using the agreement’s coverage certificate.
- Lump-sum refund. Foreign nationals leaving Türkiye permanently, with no Turkish pension entitlement, can claim back their accumulated contributions (toptan ödeme).
What the SGK is and what happens to your contributions
The Social Security Institution (Sosyal Güvenlik Kurumu, SGK) administers Türkiye’s unified social security system under the Social Insurance and General Health Insurance Law No. 5510. It records the premiums and insured days paid on your behalf and, when you meet the eligibility criteria, pays old-age, disability and survivors’ pensions. The statute is published at mevzuat.gov.tr, and the institution’s services are at sgk.gov.tr.
Crucially, moving abroad does not erase your history. The insured days and premiums already on your SGK account remain there. What changes is your ability to keep contributing and the route by which you may one day draw a pension. If you stop working in Türkiye you stop accruing new Turkish days, unless you arrange voluntary insurance (isteğe bağlı sigorta) or your new country’s system links back through an agreement.
The three insurance categories: 4/a, 4/b and 4/c
Law No. 5510 groups insured persons into three categories. 4/a covers people working under an employment contract — the former SSK population, the largest group. 4/b covers the self-employed and business owners — the former Bağ-Kur. 4/c covers civil servants and public-sector staff — the former Emekli Sandığı. Your category determines contribution rules and some pension conditions, so when you review your record before leaving it helps to know which status your Turkish years fall under. The unified framework and these categories are described by the SGK at sgk.gov.tr.
Bilateral agreements and totalisation
The most important thing for an emigrant to understand is Türkiye’s network of bilateral social security agreements. The SGK’s own list shows agreements in force with more than 30 countries, including the United Kingdom, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, Austria, Switzerland, France, Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Luxembourg, the Czech Republic, Croatia, Canada and Quebec, among others (SGK — Sosyal Güvenlik Sözleşmeleri). The Ministry of Labour and Social Security also explains the agreements through its Directorate General for External Relations at csgb.gov.tr.
These agreements provide for the combining (totalisation) of insurance periods completed in the two countries. In the SGK’s words, periods spent insured under disability, old-age and survivors’ insurance in the contracting countries are combined. In practice, if you did not accumulate enough days in Türkiye alone to qualify, your foreign insurance periods can be added to your Turkish periods to meet the minimum, and each country then pays a pension proportionate to the years completed under its system. This prevents your Turkish contributions from being wasted simply because your career continued abroad.
Can a Turkish pension be paid to you abroad?
Yes — where a bilateral agreement is in place, a Turkish old-age pension can generally be paid to you while you reside in the partner country, and the agreement sets out how benefits are exported and how the two institutions coordinate. The agreements are designed, in the SGK’s framing, to guarantee equal treatment of the nationals of the contracting states, to determine which legislation applies, and to regulate the payment of benefits abroad. You will typically claim through the social security institution of the country where you live, which liaises with the SGK. Check the specific country page on the SGK list, because the branches covered (long-term pensions only, or also health cover) differ from agreement to agreement (SGK).
Certificate of coverage for posted and temporary workers
If you are being posted abroad temporarily by a Turkish employer — or coming the other way — the bilateral agreement usually lets you stay insured in your home system for a defined period and avoid paying contributions in both countries at once. This is arranged with a certificate of coverage issued by the home institution, which the SGK administers for outbound Turkish workers. It is a coordination tool, not a pension in itself, but it protects the continuity of your record. Details and the applicable-legislation rules are set out by the Ministry of Labour and Social Security at csgb.gov.tr.
Lump-sum refund (toptan ödeme) for foreign nationals leaving
Turkish law provides a lump-sum payment, toptan ödeme, of accumulated contributions in defined circumstances under Law No. 5510. For foreign nationals this is particularly relevant: a foreign national who leaves Türkiye permanently, is not entitled to a Turkish pension, and no longer works under Turkish insurance can apply to have their accumulated old-age insurance contributions refunded as a lump sum. This is an alternative to totalisation and is generally chosen by people whose destination has no agreement with Türkiye or who will not accrue enough for a pension. Because taking the refund closes out those Turkish periods, weigh it against the totalisation route if your new country does have an agreement. The governing provisions are in Law No. 5510 at mevzuat.gov.tr, and applications are handled by the SGK at sgk.gov.tr.
Voluntary insurance: keeping your Turkish record alive
If you leave Türkiye but want your Turkish record to keep growing — for example to reach the minimum insured days for a Turkish pension in your own right — you may be able to pay voluntary insurance (isteğe bağlı sigorta) under Law No. 5510. Voluntary insurance lets an eligible person continue paying old-age, disability and survivors’ premiums on a chosen earnings base, and the days count toward pension eligibility. Whether it is worthwhile depends on how close you already are to the threshold and whether your destination’s bilateral agreement will combine your periods anyway; if totalisation will get you there, extra voluntary payments may be unnecessary. Eligibility conditions, the contribution rate and how paying voluntary premiums abroad interacts with an agreement are explained by the SGK at sgk.gov.tr and set out in Law No. 5510 at mevzuat.gov.tr. Weigh it before you leave, because gaps are harder to fill retrospectively.
Practical steps before and after you leave
Request an up-to-date service breakdown (hizmet dökümü) from the SGK so you have a clear record of your 4/a, 4/b or 4/c days. Decide whether voluntary insurance is worthwhile to keep your Turkish record active. Identify whether your destination has an agreement with Türkiye, and note which insurance branches it covers. Keep your SGK registration number, your Turkish ID or foreigner ID number, and copies of employment records — these are what a foreign institution will ask for when it combines your periods or when you later claim. If you are a foreign national leaving for a non-agreement country with no pension prospect, ask the SGK about the toptan ödeme refund before you go.
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Frequently asked questions
Do I lose my Turkish pension contributions if I emigrate?
No. The insured days and premiums already recorded stay on your SGK account under Law No. 5510; emigrating simply stops new Turkish accrual unless you arrange voluntary insurance. See Source.
Which countries have a social security agreement with Türkiye?
More than 30, including the UK, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, Austria, Switzerland, France and Canada; the current list is published by the SGK at Source.
Can my Turkish and foreign work years be combined for a pension?
Yes. Bilateral agreements provide for combining insurance periods completed in each country toward pension eligibility, as the SGK explains at Source.
Can a Turkish pension be paid to me while I live abroad?
Where a bilateral agreement is in force, a Turkish old-age pension can generally be exported and paid in the partner country; the agreements regulate payment of benefits abroad. See Source.
Can a foreign national reclaim SGK contributions when leaving Türkiye?
Yes, as a lump-sum refund (toptan ödeme) if they leave permanently and are not entitled to a Turkish pension, under Law No. 5510. See Source.
What are 4/a, 4/b and 4/c?
They are the SGK insurance categories: 4/a employees, 4/b self-employed, 4/c public servants, all unified under Law No. 5510. The SGK describes them at Source.
Sources
- Social Security Institution (Sosyal Güvenlik Kurumu, SGK) — main portal
- SGK — Sosyal Güvenlik Sözleşmeleri (list of social security agreements and covered branches)
- Presidency Legislation Portal (mevzuat.gov.tr) — Social Insurance and General Health Insurance Law No. 5510
- Ministry of Labour and Social Security — Social Security Agreements (applicable legislation, certificate of coverage)
- SGK — insured person guides and service breakdown (hizmet dökümü)
- Ministry of Labour and Social Security (csgb.gov.tr)