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Cross-border social security

International agreements

Australia’s bilateral agreements can help coordinate pension qualification, residence or contribution periods and portability with current agreement countries.

What this part of the system means

International agreements

International social security agreements are bilateral treaties that coordinate parts of two national systems. They can allow pension claims across borders and, where the particular agreement permits, combine Australian residence with contribution or insurance periods in the agreement country. Some agreements also coordinate superannuation contribution coverage for seconded workers.

Decision prompts

Questions to answer first

These do not determine eligibility. They help identify which payment, scheme or authority to check next.

1

Which agreement country is involved?

2

Which Australian or foreign pension or payment are you testing?

3

Where do you live now and where have you lived or worked?

4

Can residence, insurance or contribution periods be combined?

5

Do portability rules or seconded-worker contribution rules apply?

Primary sources

Where this section will be grounded

Compass links back to the administering agency or official scheme. Placeholder content is deliberately kept separate from a formal entitlement decision.

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