Receiving Social Security Payments, if you’re eligible for them, may or may not be complicated, depending on where you live and how you’ve set up the payment with the U.S. government. For example, the U.S. Treasury Department is restricted from sending money to countries such as Cuba, Cambodia and North Korea.
Even if you are in a country that’s non-restricted, you have to depend on international mail in order to receive your check – and most foreign banks will put a hold on U.S. checks for at least four weeks while the check is sent back to America to be cleared. In addition, you will charged a currency conversion fee.
This is where the American bank account you (hopefully) are still maintaining can come in handy. By having your Social Security payment deposited directly into your American account, you can immediately withdraw the funds with your ATM card in your new country. Or just let the funds grow in your American account and transfer a large amount every few months through an international money exchange service.
Finally, some larger U.S. banks offer a transfer of Social Security funds into your foreign bank account – the Social Security Administration normally pays for these bank fees. This arrangement has been made with a number of countries, including the United Kingdom, Australia, Argentina and many others.
Note that recently, we have been informed that Social Security should be able to direct deposit funds electronically into your bank account, regardless of whether your bank is in the U.S. or overseas. For foreign banks, just provide the SWIFT number, the routing number (or its equivalent, e.g the BSB in Australia) and the account number.
For the most current information about receiving social security payments outside the United States, you should get a copy of Social Security Administration Publication No. 05-10137, ICN 480085 by mail from the Social Security Administration, at your nearest U.S. Embassy or Consulate, or from the SSA website at https://www.ssa.gov.
I am an ex-pat residing in a country where there is an SSA direct deposit arrangement. I have tried to apply for direct deposit to a bank in my country using the necessary form, but it has been nothing but problems. The SSA representative for my country has not been able to help, he just says he doesn’t know why I’m not receiving payments. The SSA is meanwhile sending me letters that they can pay me, and then that my payments were returned. It honestly seems the SSA want to steal my earned retirement income from me.
My recommendation is to NOT apply for foreign direct deposit, because, in my experience, the clowns in the SSA do not have the competence for it. Either that or they will simply withhold your payments because they can.