If someone lives in Turkey, how do they claim the UK State Pension from abroad, and does it go up every year?

Who does this apply to?

• This post gives general information about the State Pension, the UK state retirement pension. Workplace pensions and Turkish SGK pensions are outside this post.
• GOV.UK says enough National Insurance (NI, UK social insurance contributions) must have been paid to qualify. This post does not give the number of years needed; the International Pension Centre can be asked.
• This post is not personal advice and does not say who qualifies. The information was read on GOV.UK pages in October 2026.

Details

Claiming from abroad

• The GOV.UK page says the State Pension can be claimed from abroad.
• The claim goes through the International Pension Centre (IPC): either contact it or send it the international claim form.
• As of October 2026, the IPC page gives +44 (0) 191 218 7777 for the State Pension line, open Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm. The page does not state a time zone, so check the hours with the IPC before calling.
• The same page says a call back can be requested to reduce the cost of calling from abroad, and interpreters are available. Relay UK is listed for people with hearing or speech difficulties.
• The page says replies to online queries are taking longer than usual. Changes to address or bank details must be given by phone or letter, not online.
• The pension can be paid into a bank in the country where the person lives, or into a UK bank or building society (a bank-like savings institution) account. Payment can be every 4 or 13 weeks. One country must be chosen for payment.
• Payments to an overseas account are usually converted into local currency, and a conversion charge applies. See the GOV.UK page for the current rate.

Annual increases

• General rule: the State Pension is paid worldwide, but yearly increases are paid only to people living in certain places. According to GOV.UK, these are the EEA (European Economic Area), Gibraltar, Switzerland and countries with a social security agreement with the UK. Canada and New Zealand are excluded even though they have agreements. People living elsewhere do not get yearly increases.
• On GOV.UK's list of countries where the annual increase is paid, Turkey appears under "Countries the UK has a social security agreement with".
• The only date on that page is "Published 9 June 2014". No later update date is shown.

Things to watch

• Annual-increase list: the page is dated 2014, so it is worth asking the IPC whether Turkey is still on the list today.
• Tax: GOV.UK says non-residents do not usually pay UK tax on the State Pension. For UK rental income or taxable UK savings interest, a Self Assessment tax return usually has to be filed. Turkish tax rules are not covered on these pages.
• Double taxation: GOV.UK says that where the country has an agreement with the UK, UK tax relief can be claimed to avoid being taxed twice. The Turkey page says the UK-Turkey agreement has been in force since 26 October 1988. This post does not explain how it applies to a given person.

What can you do?

1. You can start by calling the IPC. Interpreters and call backs can be requested.
2. Questions to put to the IPC: Is the annual increase currently paid for Turkey? When and how is a claim made? Which form is needed? How many years of NI are required?
3. For tax, you can ask HMRC (the UK tax office), or the tax office or a qualified tax adviser in Turkey.
4. This site cannot answer individual questions.