As of October 1, people who have lived or worked in Canada and Hungary will find it easier to qualify for social security benefits from either or both countries.

Canada signed the agreement in Budapest on March 4, 2002. Both countries have now met their legislative requirements so that the agreement can come into force.

The agreement applies to Canada’s Old Age Security program, to the Canada Pension Plan, and to Hungary’s pension program.

“Canada is committed to entering into agreements with countries such as Hungary that offer comparable programs to our Old Age Security program and the Canada Pension Plan,” said Jane Stewart, Minister of Human Resources Development, in a news release. “This agreement is an important step towards strengthening the relationship and cooperation between our two countries.”

Normally, to qualify for a benefit under the Hungarian pension program, a person must have contributed to the system for a minimum number of years. Under the agreement, people can add together their periods of social security coverage under the schemes of both countries to qualify for Hungarian social security benefits.

In the same way, to be eligible to receive benefits under the Canada Pension Plan, a person must have contributed to CPP for a minimum period. To qualify for Old Age Security benefits, a person must have lived in Canada for a minimum number of years. Under the agreement, people can use their periods of insurance under Hungary’s pension program to qualify for CPP and OAS benefits.

The social security agreement between Canada and Hungary also ensures that Canadian workers can contribute to the CPP if their employer sends them to Hungary to work temporarily. In this way, their CPP protection will not be interrupted. The agreement also ensures that Canadian workers will not have to contribute to the Hungarian pension program while they are working in Hungary.

“International agreements, such as this one, are increasingly important as global economics and greater international cooperation create greater mobility and migration between countries,” said Stewart.

To date, Canada has signed social security agreements with 46 countries.