GPFR: the free pension register for people who worked abroad
GPFR, the Global Pension Finding Register, is a free register for people who worked abroad: you add yourself once, and as pension funds join, they check GPFR for former members they cannot reach, with nothing shared unless you and the fund both say yes.
Key facts
| Fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Name | GPFR, the Global Pension Finding Register |
| For | People who worked abroad, and the pension funds that hold their money |
| Price for people | Free, always |
| How funds pay | Per confirmed match, never you |
| Data | UK GDPR, ICO registration ZC113586. Name and date of birth are kept only as codes |
| Sharing | Nothing goes to a fund unless you and the fund both say yes |
| Status | Matching starts as funds join |
| Where | Add yourself on the register page |
Who is GPFR for?
If you worked in another country, you may have paid into a pension there. People move on and lose touch: a new address, a new surname, an employer with a new name. A fund's letters can go to an address you left years ago.
GPFR turns that round. You add yourself once, with the countries, employers and years you worked. As pension funds join, they check GPFR for former members they cannot reach.
Start with the free official routes
Before any register, look at what each country offers for free. Where a country runs an official free search or overview for your pensions, our country page for it shows that route first. Our government pension portals directory lists the official pension records and portals country by country, each with the date we last verified it. If an official route works for you, use it first. GPFR is for a different case: a workplace pension fund that lost your address.
How does matching work?
As our register page sets it out: matching starts as funds join, and for each fund it opens only once that fund's data processing agreement is signed. We compare codes, never names. You and the fund each agree before anything is shared.
What happens to your details?
On the register page, your browser turns your name and date of birth into codes before anything is sent. The register page states it: data under UK GDPR, ICO registration ZC113586. Nothing goes to a fund unless you and the fund both say yes, and we delete your entry within a day when you ask.
If you add yourself on the register page, we email you to confirm your address. After that, we email you only when you ask us something (a status code or a deletion confirmation) and when there is a match.
Is it really free?
Yes, for people, always. Pension funds and trustees pay us per confirmed match, when we help them reach a member. You never pay, and we take nothing from your pension.
What is new in our emails
Every automatic email we send to a person now carries one GPFR line, and that line matches your real register entry: it invites you to add yourself, or it tells you that your details stay in GPFR.
What if you do not want to wait?
GPFR grows as funds join, so a match can take time. If you want an answer now, our free pension check shows which countries in your work history may hold a pension. Our reports identify your pensions for you: the Country Pension Identification Report at $99 per country, or the Global Pension Identification Report at $299. Full refund if we find nothing material, decided at identification, before delivery.
For pension funds
A fund turns its list of members it cannot reach into codes with our published method and sends only the codes. We keep the dated check record and any possible match. Searching is free; a fund pays per confirmed match. The fund side is on the register page.
Frequently asked questions
What is GPFR? GPFR, the Global Pension Finding Register, is a free register for people who worked abroad. You add yourself once. As pension funds join, they check GPFR for former members they cannot reach. Nothing is shared unless you and the fund both say yes.
Does GPFR cost me anything? No. It is free for you, always. Pension funds and trustees pay us per confirmed match. We take nothing from your pension.
Who sees my name and date of birth? We keep them only as codes, under UK GDPR (ICO registration ZC113586). Nothing goes to a fund unless you and the fund both say yes, and we delete your entry within a day when you ask.
Is matching running already? Matching starts as funds join. For each fund it opens only once that fund's data processing agreement is signed.
Try the alternative first
AI can tell you what a pension is. It cannot tell you that you have one. It is genuinely good at explaining how a rule works, and if that is all you needed, you have saved yourself a fee.
Then ask it which scheme holds your money and who administers it today, and ask it for the source and the date it checked. Why that is where it ends
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice. PensionHunter is a research and administrative assistance service and is not regulated by the FCA or any equivalent financial regulator. If you require financial advice about your pension please consult a qualified independent financial adviser.
We list who holds pension records in each country we cover in our pension administrator directory.
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