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Pension question, Ireland

How many years do I need for the Irish State Pension?

The ordinary floor is 520 paid full rate contributions, which is ten years, and the Department of Social Protection states that if you do not qualify on Irish insurance alone and you hold periods in another EU state or an agreement country, the records are added together and Ireland pays a pro rata share. 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).

What to do next

  1. Count your Irish working years and note any gaps.
  2. List the other countries you worked in, with dates and any insurance number.
  3. Run our free check to see which of those countries may hold a pension in your name.

Check your own working life for free

Tell us where you worked. The free check shows which countries may hold a pension for you, and which can be ruled out and why. No sign in, no charge.

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Questions people also ask

Is it paid without an application?

Nothing is sent to you.

  • Source: gov.ie and welfare.ie, read 3 October 2026

Do you give advice on what to do?

No. We identify where a pension is likely held and the official route to it, and we name each source with the date we read it. We do not give financial, tax or legal advice.