U.S. and Denmark: Social Security Agreement

What it covers

In force: Oct 1, 2008

For Denmark, the agreement covers the Social Pension (Folkepension) and the Labour Market Supplementary Pension (ATP). Danish social security taxes also cover other programs such as unemployment, sickness, maternity, medical, work accident and family allowance benefits; workers exempted from Danish coverage by the agreement pay no Danish taxes for these programs and generally cannot receive benefits from them.

How the U.S. counts Denmark credits

Applies to every U.S. agreement.

• SSA says that to have your Denmark credits counted for a U.S. benefit you must have at least 6 U.S. credits (generally one and one-half years of work).
• If you already have enough U.S. credits for a benefit, the U.S. cannot count the foreign credits.
• If you are short, you may qualify for a partial U.S. benefit based on both countries' credits.
• In 2026, one U.S. credit takes $1,890 of covered earnings, up to 4 credits a year (SSA's pamphlet prints an older 2022 amount).

Denmark's side

Denmark has two programs. The Folkepension pays flat-rate benefits based on years of residence in Denmark, unrelated to earnings. Under the agreement, a U.S. national can qualify for Danish Social Pension benefits with three years of residence in Denmark and at least one year of work in Denmark. The ATP pays benefits based on contributions, and a person can qualify with as little as one month of ATP coverage, so U.S. credits are not counted for ATP eligibility.

Ages, payments and forms

• SSA's pamphlet shows the full Social Pension at age 65 with 40 years of residence in Denmark between ages 15 and 65. A footnote in the pamphlet says the full retirement age is 65 for people born July 1, 1939 to January 1, 1959 and increases gradually to 67 for people born June 30, 1960 or later.
• Denmark pays by direct deposit on the last banking day of the month. The U.S. pays monthly. Each country pays its own benefit.
• SSA's pamphlet says to complete form SSA-2490-BK (Application for Benefits Under a U.S. International Social Security Agreement) and mail it to your local Social Security office.

Where to start

• You can apply in one country and ask that it count as a claim in the other. Each country processes the claim under its own laws, counts credits from the other country when appropriate, and tells you its decision.
• In the United States: visit or write any U.S. Social Security office, or call 1-800-772-1213 (8 a.m. to 7 p.m., business days; TTY 1-800-325-0778).
• If you live in Denmark: contact any Danish social security office, or the Federal Benefits Unit at the U.S. Embassy in Oslo, Norway (per SSA's pamphlet).

What this page cannot tell you

• Whether your own record will qualify. Only SSA and the other country can decide that.
• Current ages and amounts. SSA's pamphlets show a 2022 credit amount and some older age tables, so confirm numbers with SSA or the other country.
• Anything not stated on SSA's page for this country.