National Pension Service

Main Contents of the Social Security Agreement Between Korea and New Zealand

History of the Agreement with New Zealand

• Nov 2015 : Held the first negotiation meeting of the Agreement
• Mar 2016 : Held the second negotiation meeting and the first meeting for the Administrative Arrangement of the Agreement
• Jun 2017 : Held the second meeting for the Administrative Arrangement and the implementation meeting of the Agreement
• Oct 2019 : Signed the Agreement
• Dec 2020 : Provided the notification regarding completion of a domestic procedure of Korean side
• Dec 2021 :Received the notification regarding completion of a domestic procedure of New Zealand side
• Mar 2022 : Entry into force of the Agreement

Applicable Legislation

• In relation to Korea

  • National Pension Act (with regard to benefit, the old-age pension under the National Pension Act)

• In relation to New Zealand,

  • the New Zealand Superannuation and Retirement Income Act; the Social Security Act; the Social Security Regulations; the Veteran’s Support Act; etc.

Personal Scope of this Agreement

This Agreement shall apply to any national of either Contracting Party who is or has been subject to the legislation of Korea; or has a period of New Zealand working age residence. And, where applicable to other persons in regard to the rights derived from the person described above.

* New Zealand working age residence : it generally means a period when the person had residence in New Zealand after the person attains age 20 and before the person attains age 65. For a Korean national, includes any periods of lawful residence in New Zealand.

※ For more information, you may refer to the section Agreement

Benefits under this Agreement

Even though your periods of coverage in one country are not sufficient to qualify for pension benefits, you may be eligible for benefits after this Agreement has entered into force. This is possible due to the totalization of coverage periods in both countries.

• Korean National Pension Benefits under the Social Security Agreement

  • If you have more than 12 months of insured period in Korea but do not have enough periods of coverage(more than 10 years) to qualify for pension benefits under the Korean national pension scheme, you may be able to qualify for Korean national pension benefits by totalizing periods of coverage under the Korean pension system and periods of New Zealand working age residence. However, these periods of New Zealand working age residence creditable under New Zealand pension system, must not coincide with those under the legislation of Korea.
  • Your benefit is calculated by dividing the Korean periods of coverage by the total periods of coverage and then multiplying by the benefits amount (theoretical benefit). The benefits amount (theoretical benefit) is calculated based on the total periods in both countries.

• New Zealand Pension Benefits under the Social Security Agreement

  • If you have more than one continuous year of New Zealand working age residence, but do not have enough periods of New Zealand working age residence to qualify for pension benefits under the New Zealand pension system, you may be able to qualify for New Zealand pension benefits by totalizing periods of coverage under the Korean and the periods of working age residence under New Zealand pension systems. However, these periods creditable under the Korean national pension scheme, must not coincide with those under the legislation of New Zealand.

    * For the purpose of satisfying the requirement that a person had residence in New Zealand for five years after reaching the age 50, only periods of Korean contributions after reaching age 50 are considered.

  • Your benefit is calculated by taking into account of periods of New Zealand residence, country of residence, and other overseas pension benefit amount, etc.
• Unless otherwise provided in the Agreement, all persons to whom this Agreement applies shall receive equal treatment with nationals of that Party in the application of its legislation regarding entitlement to or payment of benefits.
• Korean lump-sum refunds are not granted to nationals of New Zealand based on the Agreement.

  Lump-sum refunds can be paid in accordance with the reciprocity principle under the National Pension Act. However, there is no New Zealand benefits corresponding to Korean lump-sum refund.

※ For more information, you may refer to the section either Agreement or Guide for Benefits Application.

Agencies of this Agreement

• Korea

  • National Pension Service (NPS)

• New Zealand

  • Ministry of Social Development : www.msd.govt.nz

Application for Korean Benefits under the Agreement

If you have both periods of coverage in Korea and periods of working age residence in New Zealand but do not have enough periods of coverage under the Korean pension scheme to qualify for Korean pension benefits, you may be able to qualify for Korean benefits by totalizing Korean and New Zealand pension periods of coverage.

Old-age Pension

1. Eligible Persons

   If you meet the following conditions for the benefits by totalizing Korean national pension periods of coverage and periods of New Zealand working age residence, you may be able to apply for the Korean old-age pension under the Social Security Agreement. However, to totalize both periods under the Social Security Agreement, you must have completed at least 12 months in Korea.

   Old-age Pension

   Type	Totalized period of Coverage	The statutory pensionable age	Others
   Old-age Pension	10 years or more	1953~1956 : 61 1957~1960 : 62 1961~1964 : 63 1965~1968 : 64 After 1969 : 65 (depending on the year of birth)	For less than 5 years from the pensionable age, income should be less than certain amount. * If income is more than certain amount, payment will be reduced.
   Early Old-age Pension	10 years or more	1953~1956 : 61 1957~1960 : 62 1961~1964 : 63 1965~1968 : 64 After 1969 : 65 (depending on the year of birth)	For less than 5 years from the pensionable age, income should be less than certain amount. * If income is more than certain amount, payment will be suspended. And the payment will be reduced from the eligible age of the Old-Age Pension.

2. Filling out the Application Form and Required Documents

   If you want to apply for an Korean Old Age Pension, you must fill out A (General Information), B (Application for an Old-Age Pension), D (Method of Payment of Benefit), F (To be signed by the applicant) and H(Consent form to collect and use personal information) on the "Application for Old Age/Divided Pension" nder the Social Security Agreement and submit it with the following required documents.

   Required documents

   • Your ID such as an Alien Registration Card, passport or Resident Registration Card

   • A copy of your Korean bank account information

     ※ If you prefer an overseas remittance, you must fill out the Overseas Remittance section D (Method of Payment of Benefit) and submit a copy of your foreign bank account information.

   • If you have any dependents supported by you,

     • Documents to confirm your family relations: a certificate of family relations, a certificate or marriage etc.
     • Documents to confirm the fact that the dependents are supported by you, if necessary: a resident(household) register, a registration of Korean national residing abroad, verification of residence, etc.
     • Documents to confirm your disability: a medical report of disability under the Agreement (a New Zealand medical report is acceptable)

Divided Pension

1. Eligible Persons

   If you had lived with your ex-spouse for 5 years or more while your spouse was paying contributions, and your spouse is a beneficiary of old-age pension under the Social Security Agreement, you may apply for the Divided Pension if you meet all of the following conditions for the benefits.

   Required Conditions for Divided Pension

   • If you had lived with your ex-spouse for 5 years or more while your spouse was paying contributions;
   • When you divorce an old-age pensioner;
   • When your ex-spouse acquires old-age pension entitlement; and
   • When you reach the statutory pensionable age

2. Filling out the Application Form and Required Documents

   If you want to apply for a divided pension, you must fill out A (General Information), C (Application for a Divided Pension), D (Method of Payment of Benefit), F (To be signed by the applicant) and H(Consent form to collect and use personal information) on the "Application for Old Age/Divided Pension" under the Social Security Agreement and submit it with the following required documents.

   Required documents

   • Your ID such as an Alien Registration Card, passport or Resident Registration Card
   • A copy of your Korean bank account information

     ※ If you prefer an overseas remittance, you must fill out the Overseas Remittance section D (Method of Payment of Benefit) and submit a copy of your foreign bank account information.

   • If you are a Korean national: documents to confirm your divorce such as a certificate of marriage, etc.
   • If you are a foreign national or a Korean national living overseas: documents to confirm the periods of marriage and occurrence of divorce such as a certificate of marriage, a certificate of residence report of overseas Korean nationals, or a confirmation of residence.

Lump-sum refund

The nationals of New Zealand are not granted to a Korean lump-sum refund in accordance with the Agreement.

Application for New Zealand Benefits under the Agreement

If you are eligible for the New Zealand pension by totalizing the periods of coverage under the Korean and the New Zealand pension systems, you are able to apply for New Zealand benefits.

1. Eligible Persons

   If you are a resident of Korea you may be able to get New Zealand pension benefits if you:

   • (1) are aged 65 or over, and
   • (2) have at least one year of continuous residence in New Zealand between the ages of 20 and 65
   • (3) have been resident and present in New Zealand and/or have paid contributions to Korean National Pension Service equivalent to at least 10 years since you turned 20
   • (4) have been resident and present in New Zealand and/or Korea for at least five years since you turned 50

     * Please note that conditions of benefits vary depending on the legislation of New Zealand

2. Filling out and Submitting the Application Form

   A claimant can apply for New Zealand pension benefits by contacting the Korean National Pension Service or through the following Competent Institution of New Zealand.

   Competent Institution

   • Ministry of Social Development → (www.msd.govt.nz) & (www.workandincome.govt.nz)

※ Information on our web-site is a general guide. You can obtain detailed information from the competent institution in New Zealand