Working abroad will add experience for retirement in Ukraine: what has changed

Ukrainians will be able to count periods of official work abroad towards their insurance experience, even if Ukraine does not have a pension agreement with the respective country. The new rules will help accumulate the experience necessary for retirement by age. This is reported by Minfin.

What foreign experience will be counted in Ukraine in 2026

It concerns only official employment, confirmed by documents from the competent authorities of another state. Previously, work in countries without a pension agreement with Ukraine could have been disregarded, even if the employee paid social contributions there.

Foreign experience will only influence the right to receive a pension in Ukraine. It will not affect the amount of the payment, as the contributions made to the Ukrainian pension insurance system are taken into account when calculating it.

For example, if a person officially worked for 25 years in Ukraine and seven years abroad, after confirmation they will have 32 years of experience. However, the Ukrainian pension will only be calculated based on the periods for which contributions were made in Ukraine.

In 2026, to retire, one must have:

• at 60 years: at least 33 years of insurance experience;
• at 63 years: at least 23 years;
• at 65 years: from 15 years.

What documents to submit to the Pension Fund of Ukraine in 2026

To confirm work abroad, it may be necessary to provide an employment contract, employer reference, extracts from insurance or pension registers, pay slips, and documents on social contributions.

If it is not possible to obtain references independently, one can contact the Pension Fund of Ukraine. The PFU has the right to send a request through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to the relevant authority of another state. The international exchange of documents may take a long time, so it is advisable to start preparation six months or a year before reaching retirement age.

Foreign documents may require an apostille or consular legalization depending on the country. References in another language need to be translated into Ukrainian and duly certified.

Earlier, we wrote about who can work in Europe without knowing the language and education.