Can you get OAS if you live abroad? 20-year rule checker

Who this checker is for

The OAS residence rules

• Living in Canada: you must be 65 or older and have lived in Canada at least 10 years after age 18.
• Living outside Canada: you must have lived in Canada at least 20 years after age 18. You must also have been a citizen or legal resident on the day before you left.
• Amount: a full pension needs 40 years in Canada after 18. Otherwise you get a partial pension: years in Canada ÷ 40. For October to December 2026, the full amount is $762.50 a month at 65 to 74 and $838.75 at 75 and over.

If you have fewer than 20 years and you leave Canada, OAS (and the Guaranteed Income Supplement) can stop after you have been away more than 6 months. Call Service Canada before you leave for more than 6 months.

How social security agreements help

Canada has social security agreements with more than 50 countries. Under most of them, years you paid into the other country’s public pension can count as years of residence in Canada, but only to help you qualify. For example:

• India (in force August 1, 2015): years contributing to the Employees’ Pension Scheme (EPS) can count.
• United States (August 1, 1984): years of US Social Security contributions after 18 can count.
• Philippines (March 1, 1997), Mexico (May 1, 1996), Korea (May 1, 1999) and many European countries have similar rules.

Two agreements are limited to contributions and cannot help you qualify for OAS: the United Kingdom (1998) and China (2017). Other agreement details vary, so check the Service Canada page for your country.

The amount is always based on your actual years in Canada. So 16 years in Canada plus 8 years in India lets you be paid abroad, but at 16/40 of the full pension.

How the checker counts

1. It takes your full years in Canada after 18. If you have 20 or more, you can be paid abroad.
2. If you have fewer than 20 and chose a country with a full agreement, it adds your credited years there. If the total is 20 or more, you can likely be paid abroad.
3. It works out your fraction (years in Canada ÷ 40, up to 40/40) and multiplies it by the current maximum for your age group.

It does not include the OAS recovery tax (for high incomes), non-resident tax, or deferral (waiting past 65 raises OAS by 0.6% a month, up to 36% at 70).

Worked example

Ravi came to Canada at 41 and will leave at 57 to return to India. He has 16 years in Canada after 18. Before Canada, he paid into India’s EPS for 8 years after 18.

• Canada only: 16 years. Under 20, so OAS alone would not be paid in India.
• With the Canada-India agreement: 16 + 8 = 24 years counted. Over 20, so he can likely receive OAS in India.
• Amount: 16/40 × $762.50 = about $305 a month (October to December 2026 rate), before non-resident tax.

Read more in moving back to India from Canada.

Tax on OAS and CPP paid abroad

Canada withholds non-resident tax (Part XIII) on OAS and CPP paid abroad: 25% unless a tax treaty lowers it. US residents, for example, have 0% Canadian withholding on CPP and OAS because the US taxes them instead. Some non-residents must also file an annual OAS Return of Income for the recovery tax. Estimate the withholding with the non-resident withholding tax calculator.

CPP is different from OAS: it is based on your contributions, not residence, and can be paid anywhere. Back to the leaving Canada guide.

Common questions

Sources

• Service Canada: OAS eligibility
• Service Canada: OAS while living outside Canada
• Service Canada: OAS benefit amount
• Service Canada: Benefits under social security agreements
• CRA: Countries with a social security agreement
• Service Canada: Canada-India agreement
• Service Canada: Canada-UK agreement
• Service Canada: Canada-China agreement

Checked against these sources on October 5, 2026. Spotted something out of date? Tell us.