Can Expats Receive A Pension in China?

Many of our readers have asked this question. 

Do Expats have Pension if they work in China? 

According to “The Interim Measures for Foreigners Who Are Employed in China to Participate in Social Insurance”, foreigners who work in China also have the right to participate in Social Security. In order to join the welfare like locals, foreigners who work in China need to obtain legal documents of working and staying. All companies registered in China, who have hired foreigners, should pay for their insurances and pension according to the rules.

1

For Expats that are hired oversea, the local branch should pay for their insurances and pension.

2

For units that have hired Foreigners, they should help employees register for Social Security within 30 days after they obtain working documents.

3

For those foreigners who have left the country before they get to the age of pension withdrawal, their Social Security accounts will be conserved until they come back to China again.

4

For those who have decided to end Social Security in paper, they will be paid the amount all at once.

5

For those who have worked in China for at least 15 years and decide to retire here, they will get retirement pay every month.

Here’s an example about pension and retirement pay:

In Shanghai, based on the average wage of 6379 CNY per month, employees need to pay 8% for Social Security, which is 510.32 for one month and 6123.84 for one year. Employers need to pay 20% for employee’s Social Security, which is 1275.8 every month and 15309.6 for the whole year.

If you have worked in China for 15 years, you would have (6123.84 +15309.6) *15= 321501.6 in your pension account. Those who retire in China will also receive basic pension.

Basic pension = (Average wage of all employees + your average wage) / 2 x years you have paid pension * 1%. 

In this case, you have 956.85 CNY of basic pension. In total, your retirement pay will be calculated basic on the sum of basic pension and the amount in your pension account.

You will receive 956.85 +( 321501.6 / 101) = 4140 every month.

(The amount in your pension account will be paid back to you in 101 months in Shanghai.)

In different cities, there are different adjustment on pensions. For example, recently Shanghai has increase its retirement pay by 60 CNY a month, Beijing by 45 CNY a month and Hebei by 38 CNY a month. Other than this, Shanghai has also increase the amount in pension account by 2.1%.

If you want to make a withdrawal from your pension account, there are ways you can do that. You can see a previous article we wrote.

Here is the link.

Here are some complementary forms we mentioned in the previous article that you need to fill out in order to make the withdrawal. You can get these forms at the local Human Resources and Social Security Bureau, which we have also list out the location in some cities for you.

Here’s a sample of Personal Pension Insurance Deposit Withdrawal Application Form for Insured Foreigners (Or Citizens of Hong Kong/Macao/Taiwan).

Here’s a sample of Basic Pension Insurance Deposit pr.

You should go to the corresponding Human Resources and Social Security Bureau in the district where your company is located.

Here is a list of addresses of the Human Resources and Social Security Bureau in some cities.

Shanghai: No.300, Shibocun Rd.

Shenzhen: No.8005, Shennan Blvd, Futian District.

Guangzhou: Shipai East Road 113-121

Beijing: Yuyou Hutong No.8, Pinganli West St

Comment below if you have any questions about pension withdrawal.

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