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RETIREMENT

What Canadians living in Germany should know about pensions

If you spent your career years in Canada but are thinking you might spend your retirement years here in Germany... Here's what you need to know about how your pension rights apply.

Published: 3 September 2024 12:41 CEST
What Canadians living in Germany should know about pensions
From alpine and sea views to cultural offerings, Germany has plenty to offer retirees. But those from outside the EU have a few things to keep in mind to collect their pensions. Image by Rudy and Peter Skitterians from Pixabay

Canada has plenty of beautiful landscapes and vistas on offer to match Germany’s Alps and sea views. But the Federal Republic’s cultural offerings and easy European travel connections can still tempt plenty of Canadian pensioners looking for a place to settle down for their Golden Years.

According to population data from Germany’s statistical agency, there were just over 18,000 Canadian nationals registered as living in Germany at the end of 2023. Around 3,500 of those – or just under 20 percent of all the Canadians residing in Germany – are aged 60 or over.

READ ALSO: Canadians in Germany: Who are they and where do they live?

So how do Canadian retirees living here support themselves?

Many are likely to have a nest egg saved up, but pension entitlements may also make up an important part of retirement income and planning. Also, knowing these amounts is crucial for calculating how much you have to pay for things like health insurance.

As non-EU nationals, Canadians looking to retire in Deutschland would need to apply for a retirement visa and register their residence.

You’ll also have to register for public health insurance if you don’t have available private coverage, with required contributions based on your income. Note that this calculation will be on any income you have – not just your pension. There’s no hard or fast rule on how much you should have in Germany, but you should certainly be taking in more than the poverty line, which is €1,200 a month.

How much you need to have may depend on where in Germany you choose to live – with cost of living in your local area taken into account.

So how does receiving a Canadian pension in Germany work?

EXPLAINED: Do your pension contributions abroad count in Germany?

Can you collect your Canadian pension in Germany?

In theory, yes. But there are some clear and stringent conditions attached.

In principle, it is difficult to collect your Canadian pension if you live outside of Canada. Whether you can do so or not depends on if you can get by the 20-year rule.

In general, to be able to collect your Canadian pension outside of Canada, you need to have lived in Canada for at least 20 combined years of your life after you turned 18. If you don’t fulfil this criteria, any pension payments due to you from Canada will stop paying out six months after you’ve been abroad.

There is one notable exception to this though. The 20-year rule also applies to countries with which Canada has a social security agreement.

Is it the Canadian Rockies or the Bavarian Alps? Either way, there are ways for Canadian pensioners to collect Old Age Security. dpa | Katrin Requadt

Canada has around 60 such agreements – including one with Germany, as well as Australia, the US, UK, and most other EU countries. On the other side, Germany has around 20 such agreements, including the one with Canada.

These agreements allow the pensioner to include the years they’ve spent working in countries like Germany regarding the 20-year rule for collecting a Canadian pension.

So a Canadian who lived in Canada until they were 30 and then spent the rest of their working life in Germany would still hit their 20-year rule and be able to collect Canadian pension payments – even if they chose to retire to Germany.

READ MORE: How can pensioners from abroad retire in Germany?

How else does the Canadian-German social security agreement work?

Canada and Germany have had a social security agreement since 1988, and updated it in 2003.

The most basic provision is that you can collect a proportionate amount of your pension from both countries after you retire – if your working life involved periods spent in both of them.

So if you worked five years in Canada and 40 in Germany – you would receive pension payments in your retirement age from both countries. In this example, the Canadian payments would be much less than the German ones – as you spent less time living and working there – but you would still get these payments.

This social security agreement also goes in reverse. Someone who worked less than five years in Germany could still receive a German pension if the time they spent working in Canada during their career pushed them above Germany’s five-year rule for being eligible for a German pension.

Note though that this generally applies to Canadian Pension Plan (CPP) payments. So payments made to the Quebec Pension Plan (QPP) may be treated differently. If this applies to you, you should consult the QPP.

READ ALSO: How long do you have to work to receive a German pension?

How much are Canadian pensions taxed in Germany?

State pensions from any country are treated as earned income by the German system. Therefore, Canadian pensions in Germany are subject to progressive tax rates ranging from 14 percent to 45 percent.

Furthermore, these will generally fall under the Canadian-German Double Taxation Treaty, so if you pay your tax in one country, you shouldn’t need to pay it in another. There are cases though where you may need to prove to the other country that you’ve already paid tax on the income in the other state.

There may also be some specific differences depending on your situation, so be sure to ask for professional advice if you think you need it – and keep all the necessary records.

Please note, we are at The Local are not financial experts. The information above is designed to help, but if you are unsure of what steps to get yourself in order tax-wise, seek professional advice.

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For members

HEALTH

Should you take vitamin D supplements in Germany?

With the mornings and evenings getting darker, many people may be wondering if taking a vitamin D supplement is recommended in Germany. Here's what to know.

Published: 13 September 2024 13:12 CEST
Should you take vitamin D supplements in Germany?

Vitamin D is a vital nutrient for overall health and well-being, and most people are aware that it can be absorbed via sunlight. 

But as long-time residents in Germany know all too well, sunlight is often hard to come by in the autumn and winter months. In December, there’s only a few hours of daylight per day, typically when most people are at work (and it often isn’t even sunny).

This makes it much harder to get enough vitamin D. A deficiency in vitamin D can lead to several health problems in the long run. Muscle weakness and cramps, fatigue and depression are among the symptoms of not getting enough of this vitamin. 

How do I get the most vitamin D in Germany?

It mostly involves getting outside in the warmer months. Germany’s disease control agency, the Robert Koch Institute (RKI), says that vitamin D production happens from March to October and this is when the body builds up reserves for the winter. 

“During this time, the body is not only able to cover its acute needs, but also to build up vitamin D reserves in fat and muscle tissue for the winter months,” says the RKI.

READ ALSO: Your guide to getting through the German winter

The RKI adds that to counteract low vitamin D levels all year round in Germany, current recommendations suggest “exposing your face, hands and arms to the sun uncovered and without sun protection two to three times a week between March and October”.

However experts add that sun protection measures, like wearing sunscreen, must be taken when spending longer periods of time in the sun.

Meanwhile, the German Nutrition Society (Deutsche Gesellschaft für Ernährung or DGE) states: “It is recommended to expose the body to the sun for a total of around five to 25 minutes per day with face, hands and large parts of arms and legs uncovered.”

A number of foods provide some vitamin D. It’s mainly found in fatty fish, roe and fish liver, but red meat, egg yolks and liver are other sources.

Vitamin D is also added to some foods in Germany, such as some milk or vegan milk drinks, yoghurt and other snacks. The nutritional label on food packaging will let people know how much vitamin D they are consuming. 

Although eating foods rich in vitamin D is generally recommended in moderation as part of a varied diet, the DGE says the main focus should be on the body’s own production of vitamin D through exposing skin to sunlight.

READ ALSO: Essential phrases and customs to survive the German winter

What about supplements?

Another way to improve your vitamin D status is to take supplements. 

The German Nutrition Society recommends going down this route if an improvement in vitamin D status cannot be achieved through other routes like getting out and about in the sunlight. 

But be aware that experts also say that taking larger doses over a long period of time can be harmful. 

Pictured are Vitamin D capsules.

Pictured are Vitamin D capsules. Photo by Michele Blackwell on Unsplash

During the height of the Covid pandemic in 2021, the Federal Institute for Risk Assessment (BfR) warned of the health risks of taking vitamin D supplements without taking to a medical professional first. 

“Higher doses should only be taken under medical supervision and taking the individual vitamin D status into account,” the institute said.

“Anyone who wants to take vitamin D on their own should only use supplements with a daily dose of up to 20 micrograms (800 international units),” said the BfR. “With this amount, health impairments are not to be expected.”

According to the BfR, regular daily intake of vitamin D via high-dose preparations – for reasons other than medical reasons – increases the risk of health damage such as the formation of kidney stones or kidney calcification. There have also been cases of acute kidney failure as a result of uncontrolled self-administration of vitamin D preparations, experts said. 

There are a number of people deemed to be more at risk of a vitamin D deficiency.

From the BfR’s point of view, a general vitamin D intake of the upper limit of 20 micrograms per day should only be considered for nursing home residents and other risk groups. 

“This is because vitamin D is produced in the skin under the influence of sunlight. However, many older people hardly exercise outdoors,” the BfR said. Vitamin D production also decreases significantly with age.

READ ALSO: 8 tips for enjoying the cold like a true German

The risk groups for an inadequate vitamin D supply also include people who rarely or never spend time outdoors or who – for cultural or religious reasons – only go outside with their bodies completely covered. Some people who suffer from chronic gastrointestinal, liver or kidney diseases or who take medication that impairs vitamin D metabolism are also more at risk. 

If you suspect that you’re not getting enough vitamin D, go to your GP. They can test for various deficiencies, but bear in mind that these tests are not usually covered by statutory health insurance. 

Even if you don’t test, GPs will be able to advise you on whether you should take a supplement in winter – or all year round – depending on your individual case. 

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