Payment options for beneficiaries living abroad
Related forms (3)
LEGISLATION
How can Hungarian benefits be paid to people living abroad?
Hungarian pension benefits and other pension-like benefits are paid by the Pension Payment Directorate of the Hungarian State Treasury (hereinafter: Pension Payment Directorate). The Pension Payment Directorate starts paying benefits within ten workdays after receiving the necessary information for it.
Hungarian benefits can be paid to a person living abroad under the following options:
- to a payment account kept by a Hungarian payment service provider,
- for residents of an EEA country, United Kingdom or Switzerland to a payment account in an EEA country, the United Kingdom or Switzerland,
- for residents of a State Party to the Agreement, to a payment account kept by a payment service provider in the State Party to the Agreement.
EEA States are all EU Member States, as well as Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway.
People living in Switzerland and the United Kingdom can apply for Hungarian benefits under the same conditions as people living in an EEA country.
The Republic of Albania, Australia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Canada, the Republic of India, Japan, the Republic of Korea, the Republic of Kosovo, North Macedonia, the Republic of Moldova, Mongolia, Montenegro, the Republic of Serbia, the Republic of Turkey, the Russian Federation, the United States of America are considered as State Parties.
In the case of a person living in a non-EEA and non-State Party country, Hungarian benefits may be paid into a Hungarian bank account.
What details are required for the payment of Hungarian benefits?
If the transfer are made to a payment account with a Hungarian payment service provider, you must enter the name of the payment service provider and the account number. It is essential that the person receiving the benefit is the owner of the account or has the right to dispose over the account.
For transfers to be made to a payment account with a payment service provider in an EEA country, the United Kingdom, Switzerland or a convention country, the following information is required for the payment:
- the name of the foreign payment service provider,
- the address of the foreign payment service provider (country, city, street, house number),
- SWIFT or BIC code of the foreign payment service provider,
- in the absence of a SWIFT or BIC code, the bank identification code,
- the IBAN account number used for international payments, or, in the absence of an IBAN, the account number
For the United States of America, Australia and Canada, the bank identification code must be provided, which is 9 digits for the United States of America and Canada and 6 digits for Australia.
If the information required for the payment is incomplete or incorrect, the consequences of the incorrect payment are borne by the person receiving a benefit and therefore no erroneously paid benefits can be paid again.
How to give instructions for the payment of a benefit?
The benefit is paid by the Pension Payment Directorate in the manner indicated in the beneficiary's declaration.
It is essential that the information necessary for the payment of the benefit is available for the Pension Payment Directorate as soon as the Hungarian benefit has been awarded, so it is recommended provide the information necessary for the payment of the benefit when you apply for the Hungarian benefit or during the procedure.
The Pension Payment Directorate will not pay the determined benefit until it has the necessary information for payment.
The form "Declaration on the payment of benefits to a person living or staying abroad" is used to provide the details necessary for the payment of the benefit, this is available on the so called “Személyre Szabott Ügyintézési Felület” of the magyarorszag.hu website, but the pensioner may also provide the details necessary for the payment of the benefit in a simple letter.
A change of payment method can be requested at any time during the payment of the benefit.
In which currency can the Hungarian benefit be paid to a person living abroad?
In the case of transfers to a financial institution account the payment of the benefit may be requested in HUF or in a currency traded by the Central Bank of Hungary (Magyar Nemzeti Bank).
The following currencies are traded by the Central Bank of Hungary (Magyar Nemzeti Bank): US dollar (USD), British pound (GBP), Australian dollar (AUD), Czech koruna (CZK), Danish krone (DKK), euro (EUR), Japanese yen (JPY), Canadian dollar (CAD), Hungarian forint (HUF), Polish zloty (PLN), Norwegian krone (NOK), Swiss franc (CHF), Swedish krona (SEK).
The beneficiary can specify the currency in which the payment is to be made, but the transfer can only be made if the payment account held with the foreign financial institution is able to accept transfers in the specified currency.
If the transfer is made to a payment account in Bosnia and Herzegovina, North Macedonia, Montenegro or the Republic of Serbia, the Hungarian benefit must be paid in euro.
Are there any costs for transfers sent abroad?
If the Hungarian benefit is paid by the Pension Payment Directorate directly into a payment account held in an EEA country, the United Kingdom or Switzerland, the transfer is free of charge.
If the Hungarian benefit is transferred to a bank account held with a Hungarian payment service provider, the costs of transferring the benefit abroad are borne by the pensioner in accordance with the business terms and conditions of the financial institution concerned.
The cost of direct transfer to a State Party of an Agreement must be borne by the beneficiary. The transfer fee is HUF 6,500 per transfer from 1 January 2022. The current amount of the transfer fee can be found in the notice on the website of the Central Bank of Hungary (Magyar Nemzeti Bank).
How often are benefits paid?
Benefits exceeding HUF 10,000 per month are paid monthly, for the month in question.
However at the request of the pensioner living abroad the pension can be transferred in arrears quarterly, semi-annually or annually.
Benefits not exceeding HUF 10,000 per month are paid quarterly in arrears, but it is also possible to request the payment semi-annually or annually.
- In the case of quarterly transfers, the benefit payable from 1 January to 31 March is paid in March, the benefit payable from 1 April to 30 June in June, the benefit payable from 1 July to 30 September in September and the benefit payable from 1 October to 31 December in December.
- In the case of half-yearly payments, the benefit due from 1 January to 30 June is paid in June and the benefit due from 1 July to 31 December is paid in December.
- In the case of annual payments, the benefit due from 1 January to 31 December is paid in December.
The changing the frequency of payments may be requested at any time.