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Ireland · Guide

How to find a lost Irish pension from abroad

Ireland does not run a member-facing pension tracing service. The Pensions Authority publishes a scheme-level register (via EIOPA's institutions-for-occupational-retirement-provision register), and the actual member record, accrued benefit, current value, lives with each scheme's trustees and administrator. From abroad, the trace runs employer-by-employer through those trustees. This guide is honest about what that means.

The official route

Pensions Authority / EIOPA IORP register. register.eiopa.europa.eu/registers/register-of-institutions-for-occupational-retirement-provision

The EIOPA IORP register lists Irish occupational pension schemes at scheme level, sourced from the Pensions Authority. It confirms a scheme exists and identifies the trustee body; it does not return member records and it is not a search-by-name service. The register is bot-gated in places; expect a manual page.

For the State pension, the Department of Social Protection handles contribution records under a PPS number through MyWelfare; that route is distinct from the occupational trace covered here.

What this route can and cannot do

Route verdict: HUMAN-ONLY

There is no button that returns every Irish occupational pension you might hold. Identification is done by walking each former Irish employer through its scheme and its current trustee/administrator. PensionHunter does this as prepare-and-guide, with a complete request pack at the Enhanced Pension Identification Report tier, written and ready for the customer to send under a signed Information Request Authority.

Steps you can take yourself

  1. List every Irish employer with rough dates (payroll numbers help but are not required).
  2. For each employer still trading, ask HR for the scheme name and the current trustee/administrator.
  3. For employers that have been acquired, wound up, or renamed, work the successor through the CRO (Companies Registration Office) before approaching the identified administrator.
  4. For the State pension, request a contribution record from the Department of Social Protection via MyWelfare using your PPS number.
  5. Cross-check any identified scheme against the Pensions Authority / EIOPA register to confirm it is still an active occupational scheme.

Where the DIY route stalls

  • No consumer-facing register, the Pensions Authority register is scheme-level and not searchable by member.
  • Employer succession, Ireland's Celtic-tiger-era mergers and windings-up make administrator identification the slow part.
  • Trustee changes, the administrator on the original booklet is often not the current one, and there is no forwarding service.
  • PRSAs and buy-out bonds, where an old occupational entitlement was moved to a personal contract with a provider, the trail crosses into personal-pension providers.
  • Cross-border employment (UK/Ireland especially), separate traces per jurisdiction, aggregated later.

Where PensionHunter fits

For Irish traces, PensionHunter's role is bounded and honest:

  • Occupational schemes: in the Country Pension Identification Report, we identify the likely scheme and current administrator employer by employer. In the Enhanced Pension Identification Report, we prepare a complete request pack for each identified administrator, written and ready for you to send under your signed Information Request Authority.
  • State pension: prepare-and-guide the Department of Social Protection request from abroad; the request itself is yours to lodge.

The member record, value, projection, options, always stays with the trustee/administrator or the Department. PensionHunter identifies where it sits.

If your career spanned Ireland plus other countries, the multi-country search covers every jurisdiction we operate in for a single fee.

Related guides

Frequently asked

Is there an Irish equivalent of the UK Pension Tracing Service?

No. The Pensions Authority runs a scheme-level register but does not offer a member-facing tracing service.

Can I search the Pensions Authority register myself?

You can browse the EIOPA IORP register, which sources from the Pensions Authority. It confirms a scheme exists at scheme level; it does not return your member record.

What about a PRSA or buy-out bond?

If an old occupational entitlement was moved into a PRSA or buy-out bond, the current holder is a personal-pension provider; the trace shifts to that provider directly.

What does PensionHunter deliver at the end of an Irish search?

For occupational pensions, the identified administrator per former employer and (at Search) the complete request pack for each, assembled as your Action Pack. For the State pension, prepare-and-guide support rather than a stand-in with the Department.

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This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice.

PensionHunter operates consumer pension search across 41 active countries, with worldwide expansion underway. We also trace lost pension members worldwide on behalf of pension schemes, funds and trustees, see /trustees.