Can a widow or widower get a pension from a country their partner worked in?

In many systems, yes, on an application, and most of the rules we hold set a time limit that runs from the death. Austria: A widow's or widower's pension is paid from the day after the date of death only if the application is made within 6 months of the death; an application made later is paid only from the day it is filed, and the months in between are lost (Source: pv.at, read 1 September 2026). The pension comes from each country where the partner was insured, under that country's rules, so the first step is a list of those countries and the years. Belgium sets a longer window: A surviving spouse who must apply has to file the survivor's pension or transitional allowance application within 12 months of the death to have it start at the death; a later application starts only from the month after it is filed, and the transitional allowance can be lost outright (Source: sfpd.fgov.be, read 1 September 2026). Our Cross-Border Pension Deadline Register sets out each rule with its official source.

How long do I have to apply?

• Bulgaria. Survivor pensions and 'widow's supplements' are granted from the day after the deceased's pension ended when the application is filed within 2 months of the date of death (Source: nssi.bg, read 1 September 2026).
• Ireland. Under the Department of Social Protection's operational guideline, an application for Bereaved Partner's Contributory Pension (formerly Widow's, Widower's or Surviving Civil Partner's Contributory Pension) should be made within three months of the date of entitlement, i.e. the date the late spouse or partner died; a person is disqualified from receiving payment for any period more than 6 months before the date the application is made (Source: gov.ie, read 1 September 2026).
• Israel. A survivors' pension (קצבת שאירים) application is recommended within 12 months of the date of death; a late application is paid retroactively for no more than 12 months (Source: btl.gov.il, read 1 September 2026).

How far back is a late application paid?

• Sweden. A surviving spouse's Swedish adjustment pension (omställningspension) or widow's pension (änkepension) is backdated only three months before the application date, so a widow abroad who applies late loses the earlier months permanently (Source: pensionsmyndigheten.se, read 1 September 2026).
• Norway. Nav normally pays only three months of arrears - "vi vanligvis bare etterbetaler for tre måneder" (Source: nav.no, read 1 September 2026).
• Canada. "If you delay, you may lose benefits." Back payments beyond 12 months are not made (Source: canada.ca, read 1 September 2026).

Our post on backdating sets out the same kind of limit for retirement pensions.

Is a survivor's pension paid for life?

Not in every case. Germany. DRV states it pays the small widow's or widower's pension for at most two years after the death of the spouse or registered partner; under the 'old law' (married before 2002 and one partner born before 2 January 1962) it is paid without time limit (Source: deutsche-rentenversicherung.de, read 1 September 2026).

Do my partner's years in other countries count?

Where an agreement covers them, they can. Ireland. Under the Department of Social Protection's operational guideline, Ireland has bilateral social security agreements with Australia (1992, revised 2006), Austria, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, Quebec, the Republic of Korea, the Swiss Confederation, the United Kingdom and the United States of America; the agreements allow reckonable periods in each country to be combined to establish entitlement to State Pension (Contributory), Invalidity Pension, Widows/Widowers or Surviving Civil Partner's Pension (Contributory) and Guardian's Payment (Contributory) (Source: gov.ie, read 1 September 2026). Our post on social security agreements explains how the counting works.

Did the scheme cover foreign workers at the time?

Not always for the whole period. Malaysia. Foreign workers in Malaysia were only brought into PERKESO's Invalidity Scheme (which pays Invalidity Pension and Survivors' Pension) with effect from 1 July 2024; before that date foreign workers were covered only by the Employment Injury Scheme, effective 1 January 2019 (Source: perkeso.gov.my, read 1 September 2026).

What can I check today?

The country hubs for the examples above, each with the official institution and its route from abroad: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Ireland, Israel, Sweden, Norway, Canada, Germany and Malaysia.

Our free pension checker and our free map start from your own work history. Our pension questions pages answer single country questions, our authority answers publish what national pension institutions told us in writing, and our monthly data release publishes our agreement routes and deadline rows as CSV, each with its source and read date.

Frequently asked questions

Do I apply in the country where my partner worked, or where I live? It depends on the country. Our post on where to apply sets out what institutions state about where a non resident applies, with sources.

Does PensionHunter apply for me? No. We identify and research: our reports name the scheme, who holds the record today and how to reach them. The application stays with you, and we give no financial advice.

Sources

• Deadline register row at-3, citing pv.at, read 1 September 2026.
• Deadline register row be-3, citing sfpd.fgov.be, read 1 September 2026.
• Deadline register row bg-2, citing nssi.bg, read 1 September 2026.
• Deadline register row ca-4, citing canada.ca, read 1 September 2026.
• Deadline register row ie-6, citing gov.ie, read 1 September 2026.
• Deadline register row il-1, citing btl.gov.il, read 1 September 2026.
• Deadline register row no-7, citing nav.no, read 1 September 2026.
• Deadline register row se-4, citing pensionsmyndigheten.se, read 1 September 2026.
• Deadline register row de-8, citing deutsche-rentenversicherung.de, read 1 September 2026.
• Deadline register row ie-17, citing gov.ie, read 1 September 2026.
• Deadline register row my-13, citing perkeso.gov.my, read 1 September 2026.