A lot of immigrants assume Social Security is only for U.S. citizens. It isn’t. If you have a green card and you’ve worked and paid Social Security taxes in the U.S., you can earn retirement benefits on the same basis as anyone else.
That matters to a lot of people. The Department of Homeland Security estimates about 13 million green card holders were living in the U.S. at the start of 2025, and more than 1.4 million people became permanent residents in 2024 alone.
The key is something called the 40-credit rule. Here’s how it works, what changes in 2027, and the shortcuts and pitfalls many people don’t know about.
How the 40-credit rule works
Social Security doesn’t count years. It counts credits, and you earn them based on how much you make from covered work, meaning jobs where Social Security tax is taken out.
| 2026 | 2027 | |
|---|---|---|
| Earnings needed for 1 credit | $1,890 | $1,970 |
| Earnings needed for the full 4 credits | $7,560 | $7,880 |
| Maximum credits per year | 4 | 4 |
To qualify for retirement benefits, most people need 40 credits. Since you can earn only four a year, that works out to about 10 years of work.
Those years don’t have to be in a row. Credits stay on your record for good, so if you work for five years, take a break and come back later, you pick up where you left off.
The 2027 amount was set last week alongside the 3.6% cost-of-living increase. It goes up slightly each year with average wages.
Don’t have 40 credits? You may still have options
Benefits through a spouse. If your husband or wife has enough credits, you may be able to claim spousal benefits on their record, even if you have few or no credits of your own. Survivor benefits can also be paid to a widow or widower based on the late spouse’s record.
Work abroad can count, in some countries. This is the part many immigrants miss. The U.S. has Social Security agreements, known as totalization agreements, with 31 countries. If you worked in one of them, your years there can help you qualify for U.S. benefits.
The countries include Canada, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Portugal, the Netherlands, Belgium, Switzerland, the Nordic countries, Poland, Japan, South Korea, Australia, Chile, Brazil and Uruguay, among others. Romania is the newest, with its agreement starting on September 1, 2026.
A few things to know:
- You generally need at least 6 U.S. credits before SSA will combine your foreign work with your U.S. work.
- Any U.S. benefit you get this way is usually partial, based on how much of your career was in the U.S.
- The other country may have its own minimum and may pay you a separate partial pension too.
Some big countries aren’t on the list. There is no agreement in effect with India, Mexico, China or the Philippines, for example. If your earlier career was in one of those countries, that work won’t count toward U.S. Social Security, and you’d need to reach 40 U.S. credits on your own. SSA’s website has the current list.
Planning to retire back home? Read this first
Qualifying for Social Security and being able to collect it overseas are two different things.
As a general rule, if you’re not a U.S. citizen and you stay outside the U.S. for more than six months in a row, your payments may stop, unless an exception applies. Whether you can keep getting paid depends on your citizenship, the country you’re living in and the type of benefit.
Some people can keep receiving payments abroad without a problem. Others may need to return to the U.S. and meet presence requirements before payments start again. And there are a handful of countries where SSA can’t send payments at all.
Because the rules vary so much, SSA has a free Payments Abroad Screening Tool on its website. Use it before you make any plans to move, not after.
The bottom line
Having a green card instead of a U.S. passport doesn’t shut you out of Social Security. What matters is your work record: most people need 40 credits, or about 10 years of covered work.
If you’re short, don’t assume you’re out of luck. A spouse’s record, survivor benefits or work in a country with a U.S. agreement could still get you there. And if you’re thinking of retiring abroad, check the payment rules first.
The easiest way to see where you stand is to create a free my Social Security account at ssa.gov/myaccount. It shows how many credits you’ve earned so far and an estimate of your future benefit. For questions about your own situation, contact SSA directly.
Sources: Social Security Administration: credit amounts, SSA: international agreements, and the Office of Homeland Security Statistics.
Maria is a dedicated news writer covering the latest UK updates on DWP, PIP, State Pension Triple Lock, Child Benefit, Universal Credit, and driving licence regulations. She focuses on explaining government announcements, benefit eligibility, payment changes, pension increases, and new regulations in a clear and easy-to-understand way.