Collecting Social Security Abroad: Understanding SSA Country List 4

For Americans considering giving up U.S. citizenship or abandoning a green card, understanding how Social Security benefits are treated abroad is essential. Many assume that once they qualify for Social Security based on U.S. work history, payments will follow them anywhere on the globe.  For U.S. citizens, this is basically correct. For non-U.S. citizens, including former citizens and former green-card holders, however, this is not automatically true.

In my previous article which explored SSA Country List 1, I examined how uninterrupted Social Security payments abroad are permitted broadly for citizens of certain countries. My earlier article covering SSA Country List 2, detailed the protection for overseas payments to foreign individuals receiving benefits based on their own U.S. earnings record.  This article focuses on SSA Country List 4, comprising 53 nations.  It provides a special exception for workers with a long-standing U.S. Social Security work history even though their country of citizenship might lack strong administrative or reciprocal arrangements with America.

Some countries appear on both SSA Country Lists 2 and 4 because the lists serve different purposes and are not mutually exclusive.  This means an individual may qualify for continued payments under more than one SSA exception.  Such a dual listing does not expand benefits or impose additional requirements. Instead it provides administrative clarity and reassurance for planning purposes.

The Six-Month Rule: Default Treatment for Non-U.S. Citizens

By default, the SSA applies a “six-month rule” to non-U.S. citizens. If an exception from an SSA Country List does not apply, the default rule governs. When a foreign individual remains outside the United States for six full calendar months, Social Security payments are suspended beginning in the seventh month. To resume benefits, the person must return to the U.S. and be lawfully present there for a full calendar month.

The Country List 4 Exception

SSA Country List 4 provides an important exception for workers who have made substantial contributions to the U.S. Social Security system. The SSA’s wording can be confusing: it states that if an individual is a citizen of a List 4 country and has either lived in the United States for at least 10 years or earned at least 40 U.S. Social Security credits, benefit payments may continue even if the person remains outside the United States for more than six full calendar months.

In practice, however, eligibility for retirement benefits generally requires earning at least 40 Social Security credits. Living in the United States for 10 years, without sufficient covered earnings to accumulate those credits, does not by itself create entitlement to Social Security benefits. The SSA’s phrasing may suggest that residence alone could qualify a worker, but the List 4 exception applies only once the individual is already entitled to benefits based on U.S. work.

This exception applies primarily to workers receiving Social Security benefits on their own U.S. earnings record. It may also apply to certain dependents or survivors, but only if additional SSA requirements are met, which are beyond the scope of this article. While some workers may qualify for benefits with fewer than 40 U.S. credits through a Totalization Agreement, that eligibility does not automatically determine whether payments may continue abroad and must be evaluated separately under the SSA’s country-list rules.

Why List 4 Exists

List 4 reflects SSA’s recognition that workers who have earned substantial U.S. Social Security credits have a long-standing stake in the system and reflects the goal of achieving fairness for them even if their country of citizenship does not have strong verification and administrative ties to the United States.  Since they have contributed to U.S. Social Security over many years, SSA seeks to protect that participation. Unlike Lists 1 and 2, which primarily rely on citizenship or treaty arrangements, List 4 combines citizenship with a qualifying U.S. work history.

Although SSA Country Lists 2 and 4 may appear duplicative, they are based on different policy rationales and administrative considerations. Both lists apply only to individuals receiving Social Security benefits on their own U.S. work record, which necessarily means the worker has already earned the minimum 40 credits required for eligibility. The distinction lies in why the SSA permits payments to continue abroad. Country List 2 reflects the SSA’s confidence in paying benefits to citizens of certain countries based largely on country-level administrative reliability and reciprocity. Country List 4, by contrast, is grounded in the worker’s substantial attachment to the U.S. Social Security system rather than country cooperation. It is also possible that maintaining a separate List 4 allows the SSA greater flexibility to apply heightened scrutiny, verification requirements, or future administrative conditions to payments made to citizens of less-covered countries, without disturbing the broader protections afforded under List 2.

Which Countries Are on SSA Country List 4

As of publication, citizens of the following countries may qualify for uninterrupted Social Security payments abroad under SSA Country List 4 rules if they meet the 40-credit requirement:

Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Botswana, Burundi, Cabo Verde, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, China, Congo (Republic of), Eritrea, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Fiji, Gambia, Ghana, Haiti, Honduras, India, Indonesia, Kenya, Laos, Lebanon, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Malaysia, Mauritania, Mauritius, Myanmar, Nepal, Nigeria, Pakistan, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Solomon Islands, Somalia, South Africa, South Sudan, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Taiwan, Tanzania, Thailand, Timor‑Leste, Togo, Tonga, Tunisia, Uganda, Yemen.

This list includes countries from Asia, Africa, and Oceania, offering a broad spectrum of potential long-term residency options for eligible workers.

Citizenship and Work History Are What Matter

For List 4, two conditions are essential: citizenship in a List 4 country and a qualifying U.S. Social Security work record of at least 40 credits. Residency abroad is irrelevant. Workers may live anywhere in the world, even in countries that are not on any SSA list and still receive uninterrupted benefits if they meet these citizenship and work history requirements.

The confusing SSA language about “lived in the U.S. for at least 10 years” is best understood as reflecting the same level of long-term attachment to the U.S. system that is ordinarily demonstrated by earning 40 credits. Simply living in the U.S. for 10+ years without earning enough covered wages does not create benefit eligibility.

Practical Considerations Before Expatriation

Former U.S. citizens or green-card holders should carefully plan before giving up U.S. status. U.S. income tax on Social Security for nonresident aliens may take a large chunk of the benefits.  Aside from this, “covered expatriate” status may impact not only the pocket of the individual giving up U.S. status, but may have a surprising impact on those who receive gifts or inheritances from them in the future.

Workers eligible under SSA List 4 must consider the following:

1. Workers must meet the 40-credit requirement as the first step to being able to reside internationally without suspension of benefits.
2. Individuals should confirm citizenship and work history with SSA to ensure uninterrupted income.
3. Citizenship planning may be possible by maintaining or acquiring citizenship in a List 4 country to protect future Social Security benefits.

Conclusion

The Social Security Administration’s country lists operate as a tiered system that determines whether non-U.S. citizens can receive benefits abroad without interruption. As explained in earlier articles in this series, Country List 1 offers the most favorable treatment, allowing uninterrupted payments worldwide based solely on citizenship. Country List 2 extends similar protection to citizens of additional countries when benefits are paid on the worker’s own U.S. earnings record.

Country List 4 completes this framework by protecting long-term U.S. workers whose countries of citizenship lack strong administrative or reciprocal arrangements with the United States. Rather than relying on country-level cooperation, List 4 focuses on the worker’s substantial contribution to the U.S. Social Security system.

The three SSA country lists underscore a critical planning reality for former U.S. citizens, former green-card holders, and foreign nationals with U.S. work histories. Portability of one’s Social Security benefits depends not on where one lives, but on citizenship and classification under the SSA’s country lists. Understanding these distinctions before expatriation or overseas retirement is critical to avoid interrupted income and a surprising suspension of benefits.

Together, this three-part series explains how the SSA’s country lists function as an integrated framework governing whether non-U.S. citizens can receive Social Security benefits abroad. Careful planning around citizenship, work history, and classification should be examined before expatriation or overseas retirement

Posted February 26, 2026

This post first appeared in Forbes February 10, 2026