SSN Benefits and SIN Benefits

[prak11]

Hello All,

I'm Canadian PR working in the US on H1B visa for the past 5 years.Now, If I decide to move to canada, will all the Social Security Benefits in the US be transferred over to canada or I will loose all the SSN money I had paid so far?

Thanks

 

[me2land]

You will get credit for the quarters you have accumulated under Social Security in the US.

¬m2l

 

[prak11]

Thank you very much for your reply me2land.
(1) What do you mean by I will get credit for quarters I have accumulated under SSN in US? Does it mean all my SSN money will get transferred to canada?
(2) Say I have paid for SSN in the US for 5 years. If I contribute for 3 more years in SIN canada and return back to India, will I get all my SIN benefits after retirement/can I encash my SIN benefits(money I have contributed for 8 years) when I return back to India?

Thank you very much

 

[prak11]

me2land,

I also want to add that I'm an Indian citizen who just has a canadian PR and working for an American company, hired in the US on H1B visa. I believe you took that in to account when you said my SSN benefits gets transferred to canada

Please let me know

Thanks.

 

[me2land]

(1) What do you mean by I will get credit for quarters I have accumulated under SSN in US? Does it mean all my SSN money will get transferred to canada?

Yes, but SS is a social program so you don't get all your money back, you can get more but mostly less depending on your income and how long you live after retirement.The more money you make the more screwed you are. They calculate your retirement $ from your 35 best earning working years. For the low income folks their SS checks would be something like 45% of their income(inflation adjusted) and for high income forks it would be like 25%.

(2) Say I have paid for SSN in the US for 5 years. If I contribute for 3 more years in SIN canada and return back to India, will I get all my SIN benefits after retirement/can I encash my SIN benefits(money I have contributed for 8 years) when I return back to India?

You need to have accumulated 40 quarters (equivalent of 10 working years) to qualify to receive SS at retirement. I think it's the same or similar to CPP in Canada but I'm not sure. You have to be a legal resident in the US to collect SS at retirement. If you are a US citizen you can collect it from anywhere in the world. I'm not sure about CPP but it could be the same. You cannot cash out your ss money before your retirement. If you leave the US heading to a country that has no SS treaty with the US your money is all gone unless you are a US citizen.

¬m2l

 

[me2land]

I also want to add that I'm an Indian citizen who just has a canadian PR and working for an American company, hired in the US on H1B visa. I believe you took that in to account when you said my SSN benefits gets transferred to canada

You should have no problem transferring your SS benefits

¬m2l

 

[can_usa_97]

This was a big concern for us before we opted to start our process. My husband has worked in the US for 12 years and myself 13 and returning to Canada with him having only worked at McDonalds for 3 years, scared us.

Check out this pdf.
http://www.ssa.gov/pubs/10137.pdf

 

[can_usa_97]

I think this actually lays it out easier.

http://www.socialsecurity.gov/pubs/10137.html#when

 

[me2land]

can_usa_97 - thanks you for the links.

¬m2l

 

[prak11]

CAN_USA,

Thank you very much for the reply. These rules are very confusing. In summary this is what I want to know.If you can answer these it would help me decide if I want to move to Canada.

(1)I'm an Indian Citizen and a Canadian PR working in the US on H1B visa for an american company hired in the US for the past 5 years.Now, If I decide to move to canada, will all the Social Security Benefits in the US be transferred over to canada or I will loose all the SSN money I had paid so far?

(2) Say I have paid for SSN in the US for 5 years. If I contribute for 3 more years in SIN canada and return back to India for good as an Indian Citizen, will I get all my SIN benefits after retirement eventhough I'm a citizen of india and residing in india/can I encash my SIN benefits(money I have contributed for 8 years) when I return back to India?

(3) How many years do we need to contribute in SIN in order to get the benefits after retirement?

(4) What is the retirement age at which I will start receiving the SIN benefits?

Thanks

 

[can_usa_97]

CAN_USA,

Thank you very much for the reply. These rules are very confusing. In summary this is what I want to know.If you can answer these it would help me decide if I want to move to Canada.

(1)I'm an Indian Citizen and a Canadian PR working in the US on H1B visa for an american company hired in the US for the past 5 years.Now, If I decide to move to canada, will all the S ocial Security Benefits in the US be transferred over to canada or I will loose all the SSN money I had paid so far?

(2) Say I have paid for SSN in the US for 5 years. If I contribute for 3 more years in SIN canada and return back to India for good as an Indian Citizen, will I get all my SIN benefits after retirement eventhough I'm a citizen of india and residing in india/can I encash my SIN benefits(money I have contributed for 8 years) when I return back to India?

(3) How many years do we need to contribute in SIN in order to get the benefits after retirement?

(4) What is the retirement age at which I will start receiving the SIN benefits?

Thanks

I'm not 100%, this is just how I interpret it.... so, if I'm reading it correctly....

1) I'm not sure - I was reading something somewhere about continuing credits being earned in some locations. I'll try to look into that further at my kids naptime. I dont' remember where I saw it last night so I'll have to read thru several pages I bookmarked.


2) No. You'd have to have worked in the US for 5 more years, not just 3.

3) 10 years and earned 40 credits

4) Somewhere between age 65 & 67. It is gradually increasing from 65 to 67 for anyone born in 1960 or later.

Note, it sounds like it's taxed quite highly For example my husband & I will make over 44K combined, thusly we'd be taxed upto 85% of our benefits. So say we were supposed to get 4K a month - upto 3400 of that could be taxed. Additionally, if you worked 10 years in the US and were eligible for benefits, and returned to India it sounds like you'd be taxed additionally for being a non-resident/citizen because there is no tax treaty between India & the US. There is between Canada and the US though - so if you were to become a Canadian citizen and have banked the 10 year requirement, you could collect the monies.

Once again, this is my interpretation. I'll try to find that continuing credit thing for you in a few hours, when my kids are asleep.

 

[prak11]

CAN_USA,

Thank you very much for the considerate reply.

(a) There is a aggreement between indian and usa. If i as an indian contribute to ssn for 10 years then i can get the benefits after 65. Now, Can the 10 year rule be a combination of 5 years USA and 5 Years canada?

(b) Do you know if i return back to india after living in canada for 5 years and contributing to SIN, will i get something from CPP after retirement?

(c) do you know who would be able to answer all these questions?

Thanks

 

[can_usa_97]

CAN_USA,

Thank you very much for the considerate reply.

(a) There is a aggreement between indian and usa. If i as an indian contribute to ssn for 10 years then i can get the benefits after 65. Now, Can the 10 year rule be a combination of 5 years USA and 5 Years canada?

(b) Do you know if i return back to india after living in canada for 5 years and contributing to SIN, will i get something from CPP after retirement?

(c) do you know who would be able to answer all these questions?

Thanks

1) you are right, sorry. It says within the document > You are a citizen of one of the countries listed below, and the worker on whose record your benefits are based lived in the United States for at least 10 years or earned at least 40 credits under the U.S. Social Security system.> and that applies to India. It sounds like you must have worked in a SS approved/eligibility in a job 10 years.

The agreement I was thinking of is called a Totalization agreement.
It does not appear that India is one of the countries with this agreement -per this link - http://www.ssa.gov/international/agreements_overview.html

2) I'm not sure about what Canada's rules are regarding retirement.
Here is a link to their site though- which seems to offer a little information. I tried to find out if Canada has a similar agreement with India, but was not able to find such information. But I did find this link which lists in the drop down the countries they have agreements with - if I'm reading it right, and India is not listed.

3) the best people to ask would be SS and CCP themselves.