Pension provision for migrants

The Russian legislation regulating pension provision for citizens of the country reflects issues related to pensions for migrants in 2021. Citizens of countries that were former Soviet republics of the USSR can count on receiving a pension in the Russian Federation, subject to a number of requirements. Agreements between countries on this issue were signed back in 1992.

According to the text of this document, pension payments to citizens of the former USSR are made on the basis of the current legislation of the country of which they are citizens.

Citizens of other countries who decide to migrate to Russia for permanent residence can also become the owner of a Russian pension.

Help for displaced people

The Russian state provides financial assistance to forced migrants in the form of a one-time benefit for each family member. In accordance with Government Decree No. 724, the amount of payments is:

100 rubles – adults, children;
150 rubles – low-income people.

To receive payments, citizens must contact the territorial body of the Ministry of Internal Affairs with an application in which they indicate all family members who arrived with them.

Certificate: If a person is recognized as poor, he must provide a certificate of recognition as such in accordance with Federal Law No. 134.

Pensions for migrants from the ATO zone

Against the backdrop of political instability and the difficult situation in Ukraine, many residents were forced to leave the country, including to Russia.

When finding employment in the Russian Federation or other countries, Ukrainian pensioners and citizens of pre-retirement age find themselves in a situation where social and tax deductions from wages remain in the countries where they work.

In this regard, adjustments developed by Ukrainian legislators and approved by the Verkhovna Rada were made to some by-laws of Ukraine concerning the accrual of pensions to immigrants by the Pension Fund of Ukraine (PFU).

Let’s understand the concept of “immigrant pension”

Due to military operations and the anti-terrorist operation carried out in a number of areas of the Lugansk and Donetsk regions by the Armed Forces of Ukraine, hundreds of thousands of people found themselves in a difficult and life-threatening situation. In this regard, for about 5 years (since 2014), there has been an outflow of migrants hiding from devastation and war to peaceful regions of the country.

Among them are a fairly large number of pensioners who have sufficient grounds to receive funds from the state pension fund. Pensions for such migrants are calculated in accordance with special rules developed by the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine.

Important! Those citizens who, according to Ukrainian legislation, have the right to receive funds for pensions, but live in the territories of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions not controlled by the country’s authorities, do not receive the corresponding payments.

Types of entitlement pension

Once a person receives the right of residence, he receives certain rights:

Medical service;
Free education;
Establishment and receipt of pension accruals under the conditions prescribed in Federal Law No. 400 and other legal federal acts.

According to Federal Law No. 166, those who have received the status of migrants have the right to receive all possible types of pensions.

This right is granted to migrants on the same basis as to citizens of the Russian Federation by birth. They can receive such types of pension transfers as:

By length of service;
For disability;
Standard old age pension;
Support from the state for the loss of a breadwinner.

Rules for calculating benefits

Not all citizens who come to their place of residence in peaceful regions of Ukraine can receive funds issued towards a pension, but only those who meet certain criteria. They are directly established by law and are quite strict, for which they periodically come under criticism from the public and individual politicians.

However, here it must be taken into account that such rules were developed because the Pension Fund of Ukraine is experiencing a constant shortage of funds, so pensions can only be paid to those citizens who really need it and have the right to do so.

In addition, the absence of government control bodies in the ATO coverage area becomes the reason for various types of fraudulent schemes that unscrupulous citizens use to illegally obtain money.

So, according to the approved rules, a pension can be accrued to the following persons:

Having Ukrainian citizenship . Only citizens of Ukraine can apply for cash benefits. Proof of citizenship is usually a passport.
Those living on the territory of the ATO before it began . Persons who had a permanent place of residence before 2014 in the territories where the ATO is currently being carried out are entitled to apply for a pension.
Those who left the ATO after the start of hostilities and permanently reside in any region of Ukraine. The region and city of residence where the migrant from Donbass settled does not matter for the payment of the pension - the main thing is that it must be a territory controlled by the Ukrainian authorities.
Registered in accordance with the established procedure with the social security authorities. Without certificates from social security that confirm the status of a migrant, it is impossible to receive a pension.
Have legal grounds for assigning a pension.

To receive a pension, migrants must meet the criteria for a citizen’s age and work experience.

Important! On the territory of Ukraine, a pension reform is taking place, associated with an increase in the age when workers can retire. It is planned that it will be established depending on the length of service - the shorter it is, the higher the age. The consequences of the pension reform affect all citizens, including those who have the status of internally displaced persons.

Conditions for pension accruals

It is necessary to have a special pensioner ID (plastic card), with which he can receive benefits and take advantage of payments. To register it, you should contact the PFU. The card is marked with a photo of the recipient and his digital signature.
Every six months, people whose personal data is included in the so-called SBU blacklists and who have reached retirement age must undergo identification. To implement this, you should contact Oschadbank to re-register the card in the controlled territory. The card account must contain funds in the amount of at least one hryvnia. After the first year of using the pension card, verification will be required once a year.
An elderly person is obliged to notify the Ukrainian Pension Fund if he enters the ATO zone, even if the period of stay there is minimal.

After a wave of protests, citizens were forced to appeal to the Supreme Court of Ukraine to appeal the illegal suspension of PFC payments. The highest judicial body satisfied the demands of the elderly, since the decision contradicts the law on compulsory pension insurance and is unlawful. And also some conditions for verification of elderly people from the “SBU list” were canceled.

How to obtain ATO resettlement status?

In the ATO zone, payments to pensioners stopped from 12/01/14. Their future fate hung in the air. Only if Donetsk came under the control of Kyiv could one hope that someday the funds earned would reach their owners.

As an act of goodwill and a manifestation of the state’s intentions not to leave the population of the rebellious region in trouble, it was announced that pensioners have the right to receive payments in territories controlled by Kyiv. You need to follow a number of simple steps to register your new status:

Contact the social protection department with an application to issue a certificate of assignment of ATO resettlement status.
Provide copies of your passport, pension certificate, identification code.
In the application, indicate the bank account number for transferring the pension.
Register at your new place of residence.
Register with the pension fund.

From this moment on, the certificate of assignment of ATO resettlement status will become an official document, on the basis of which it becomes possible to receive your hard-earned money. The certificate is valid upon presentation of a passport as confirmation of the citizen’s identity.

On the conditions for obtaining ATO resettlement status

18.03.15. – the date from which registration of certificates of obtaining migrant status with the migration service was announced. The DPR has been declared an occupied territory or an ATO region; this fact is officially approved in a decree of the country’s government.

Based on this document, all citizens who voluntarily resettle from the area of military operations are freely issued a certificate of assignment of a new status.

Citizens of Ukraine, stateless persons but permanently residing in the country, as well as foreigners who were forced to leave their permanent place of residence have the right to receive a certificate. The reason for leaving must be an ATO action.

Possibilities for obtaining help may vary:

Contacting the social protection authorities of the citizen's official representative if it is impossible to do this in person.
Submitting an application through an official of an organization that provides accommodation for displaced persons. This option is used when a migrant seeks help from the authorities involved in the work of the regional headquarters.
The application can be submitted through the employees of the housing and communal services office at the citizen’s place of residence.
Authorized persons of township and village councils at the place of relocation and residence of the citizen.

All of these bodies are authorized not only to accept applications from ATO resettlers, but also to issue official certificates of assignment of a new status.

In extreme resettlement conditions, it is not uncommon for citizens to lose their identity documents. Until they are fully restored, it is possible to obtain a temporary migrant certificate.

To do this, you need to contact the territorial body of the State Migration Service, where they are required to issue it within one day. Based on this document, it is possible to obtain a certificate of obtaining the status of a displaced person.

Will there be an abolition of pension payments in Ukraine?

At the beginning of 2021, the Ukrainian authorities began compiling lists of displaced persons whose certificates and, accordingly, pension payments will be cancelled. In this way, migrants are deprived of pension payments in an illegal way.

In Ukraine, special units have been created that are required to check the place of residence of displaced persons once every six months. Based on the results of the work, an inspection report for a specific object is drawn up. Then, at the beginning of July 2021, pension payments to displaced persons who did not contact Oschadbank to open a bank account by July 1 were stopped.

To open a bank account, you need to do the following:

call the official number 0-800-210-800 so that bank employees can schedule a visit;
take your passport details and pension certificate with you;
conclude an agreement to receive a card;
notify the financial institution of the new account details.

Innovation

Starting from August, citizens of retirement age will be issued new cards at the bank, which will also serve as a pensioner’s ID.

In this case, the pensioner is obliged to contact the department where this ID was received every 6 months for personal identification. After a year, the number of procedures is reduced to once a year. With one omission, pension payments are immediately suspended.

It is important to know! Pension in Moldova

As a result of the introduced changes, the Ukrainian government is trying in every possible way to curtail the rights of current migrants of retirement age in order to reduce budget costs.

Public organizations stood up for the pensioners and demanded an explanation for the current situation. After all, the payment of pensions is the responsibility of the state in accordance with Article 64 of the Constitution of Ukraine.

What is required to receive payments?

There are several conditions for the process of processing pension payments for Ukrainian immigrants. To register them, you need to contact the pension fund closest to the place of registration in the controlled territory.

List of documents for registering the right to accrue Ukrainian pensions:

Documents required for calculating pensions from Ukraine

Ukrainian internal passport.
Special identification password or tax code.
Photos in official document format.
A certificate in the prescribed form confirming the relevance of the migrant status. You can order it in the office of the social security authorities for residents. It is necessary to apply for the status of a migrant or refugee.
A certificate containing information about the provided social benefits. You will need a work book.
Certificate of salary accruals. The document must be ordered from the last employer.
A certificate issued from the actual, current place of residence.
Information from the address (place of registration).
Document confirming participation in hostilities, if available.
An extract confirming that the citizen is not receiving benefits from social authorities for working with the population of Crimea, that the citizen is not registered in the so-called occupied territory of the LPR or DPR, in Russia.
An extract stating that the citizen is not listed as a co-owner of the individual entrepreneur or manager.
Application for crediting amounts by transfer to an issued bank card.

It is necessary to have an open account with the National Bank of Ukraine Oschadbank. And also submit an application for calculation and accrual of pension.

Sometimes the transfer of the amount is suspended due to the loss of documents. In this case, you must submit an application to the Ukrainian Pension Fund for consideration of your personal file.

Verification of the information provided will take 15 working days. Among other data, the applicant’s living conditions are checked.

If the decision of the social authorities is positive, the elderly person is given a preliminary paper on the assignment of payments. It is subsequently sent for consideration by the commission on issues of calculating pensions for Ukrainian refugees.

After five working days, the commission makes a decision based on the results of the inspections, which it notifies the PFU. If the decision is positive, the first amount will be transferred to the pensioner’s account. In general, no more than a month passes from the start of filing an application for accrual and payment of a pension to the moment it is paid.

In order to receive money and register refugee status, a working pensioner will have to quit his job. You will need to show a certificate of termination of the official employment contract. It should indicate as the reason for dismissal: “Traveling to another, safe region.”

Military pensions in Ukraine

Pension payments for 500 thousand military pensioners have been increased by 1,500 hryvnia from the beginning of 2021. Today the amount is 4400 hryvnia.

How to apply for a pension if documents are lost

In the event of hostilities, one or more documents may be lost. It is possible to obtain a migrant certificate, but in a temporary form, by presenting any remaining official document for the period of restoration of the full package of documents.

Registration of pension benefits in 2020

According to the rules prescribed in Federal Law No. 166, every migrant has the right to proper support from the state in the form of pensions.

This right is granted to migrants on equal terms with Russian citizens. Accordingly, the documents and registration procedure will be approximately the same. There may be isolated exceptions. They relate to the initial registration of official migrant status, as well as confirmation of official permanent registration.

Procedure for applying for a pension

As noted above, in order to obtain the right to maintenance, a migrant is required to apply for the appropriate status and obtain temporary registration.

After this, in a manner regulated by law, this category of citizens submits an application and papers to obtain an official right to reside. If everything is in order with the papers, the person receives permanent registration on the basis of Federal Law No. 115, Article 8.

Having received the required official status, a person can apply for financial support from the Pension Fund. To do this, you need to write a corresponding application and bring it to the organization with temporary or permanent registration.

After reviewing the submitted papers for their reliability, after determining the amount of the salary, deductions begin to be regularly transferred to the citizen. The transfer can be made to a pre-registered bank account or provided by mail.

Documentation

There is a certain list of documents that must be attached to the application. The list depends on what payment the migrant is applying for.

Old age pension

To receive a regular old-age pension, you must attach the following documents to your application:

Identification;
Resident card;
Work book with fixed length of service;
Certificate from the Pension Fund of the country from which the refugee came. It must confirm that the person is not receiving a pension in his country or that its payment has officially ceased;
Certificate confirming the address of residence; Document on the amount of insurance transfers.

Disability pension

If an application for financial support due to disability is submitted, in addition to the documents listed above, you must additionally provide:

Medical papers confirming the disability group.
A document reflecting the composition of the family. It must indicate the persons in custody.

For the loss of a breadwinner

When applying for a pension of such a plan, the following additional papers must be attached to the documents listed above:

Official certificate of death of the breadwinner.
Papers confirming family ties.
Work record book of the deceased.
Certificate of the amount of insurance premiums.
Document on lack of income.

Payment amount

Each category of pension accruals consists of two main elements:

Fixed payment, which is determined taking into account the standards of Article 16 of Federal Law No. 400;
The insurance part of the pension, which is calculated according to Article 15 of Federal Law No. 400.

After standard calculations of old-age pension accruals, the amount will be equal to 4558.93 rubles. If we are talking about accruals for disability and loss of a breadwinner, the minimum here is 2,279 rubles. This is 20% of the first amount.

As for the insurance pension, it is calculated based on the following factors:

IPC is an individual coefficient. It is calculated based on contributions to the Pension Fund.
SPK – the cost of one point. In 2021 it costs 74.27 rubles.

The pension for a migrant is determined by the formula - the number of points is multiplied by the cost of one point at the moment. The established payment is added to what is received.

When calculating a pension associated with the loss of a breadwinner, the IPC of the deceased is taken as one of the elements. In other words, the pension for each accrual category depends on the transfers made to the Pension Fund.

This is directly related to the length of service worked over the years and the value of the point at the time of calculation. These indicators increase every six months. This needs to be taken into account.

How is a pension paid to an ATO displaced person?

As soon as the pensioner has completed all the steps to receive a pension after relocation, pension payments should be received in the bank account from the next month.

The PF is obliged to transfer all funds in full from the moment the payments are stopped to the citizen, regardless of the time that has passed since the payments were stopped.

The pension fund makes a request about the status of the migrant’s personal account in the state database at the previous address. Due to the fact that the ATO territories are under the jurisdiction of Ukraine as a single state, searching for information about a pensioner and payments made to him is not difficult.

The pension benefit of the migrant is paid at his current place of residence. You can receive money through a post office in cash, to a bank card, or to a bank account. The pensioner himself chooses one of the options for receiving money.

Delays and problems

Despite state guarantees expressed in Ukrainian regulations, displaced citizens often complain about problems with receiving payments.

Among the main ones are:

Refusal to assign payments. Occurs if the migrant has not fulfilled any condition for calculating his pension. For example, he provided an incomplete document or provided false information about himself.
Termination of payments. A forcibly displaced citizen will be deprived of receiving money if he violates the rules of migration registration and also ignores the requirements of social security representatives related to undergoing scheduled checks.
Delay in receipt of money. They can occur for a variety of reasons. You should contact the PFU or the social protection department about the reasons.

Last news

Pension accruals are recorded several times a year. This process is carried out in full accordance with inflation. Despite the regularity, such indexation will not be carried out at the end of this year 2021. The country is experiencing certain economic difficulties.

Despite the lack of indexation, neither citizens of the Russian Federation nor those who have received the status of migrants will suffer material losses. In 2021, each person receiving government support will receive a payment in the amount of 5,000 rubles.

The policy of the Russian Federation in matters relating to migration and the presence of foreigners in Russia is aimed exclusively at improving the living conditions of migrants, their employment and government support.

Thanks to this, not only people with poor living conditions, but those with unique professional skills are coming to the country. They are able to ensure a significant increase in the level of labor and professional resources of the state.

At the same time, the percentage of transferred taxes increases significantly. For this reason, benefits and pension transfers provided to displaced persons will not be cancelled. But they may undergo some changes.

What other benefits are there for migrants?

The primary right for displaced students to places in the university dormitory.
Free textbooks and other aids.
For IDPs who have lost their jobs, the Employment Center operates a simplified registration and registration system.
Free food for a month from the date of registration until the migrant finds a job and does not have the funds to purchase it.
Humanitarian assistance, as well as assistance from charitable organizations.
Simplified registration in any clinic at your place of residence, as well as free treatment and examinations. You only need to pay for ultrasound or MRI.
A simplified system for applying for subsidies for utility bills.
Temporary housing from the state. However, unfortunately, there are problems with this - there is simply not enough social housing for everyone, even for temporary stay, and therefore, it is primarily provided to large families of migrants.

Unfortunately, the responsible organizations and institutions do not have a budget sufficient to solve all the problems of displaced people in Ukraine. But if you have the right to receive such a status, it is worth applying for it in order to at least partially cover your expenses and not lose your right to government benefits, which can at least make your life a little easier or resolve any issues.

Reasons for not being recognized as a migrant

Status can be denied for several reasons. Among them:

untimely application for migrant status (the law sets a period of 12 months);
relocation due to famine, epidemic, emergency;
committing a crime against humanity or other serious crimes.

The person is given a written notice of refusal. Thus, not everyone can apply for displaced person status.

New rules for calculating pensions for migrants from Ukraine in 2021

In 2021, as a result of active protests by human rights activists and lawyers in Ukraine, as well as members of the UN Human Rights Committee, it was possible to cancel some decisions taken by the Verkhovna Rada.

Human rights activists declared it illegal to restrict the right of elderly Ukrainians to receive a pension. After this, the government announced that the blocked amounts would be paid.

Other positive points:

The decision of the Ukrainian authorities on the indexation of pension accruals, carried out on July 1, 2021. The pension coefficient for people applying for benefits for the first time has been revised. Now it is equal to 1.
The decision to index social payments by 750 hryvnia in 2019.
Extension of the pension reform stage until 2021, at which it is planned to increase the amount of accruals by another 50%.
Possibility of choosing a method of transferring money through Oschadbank (to a bank card, to a personal account) or issuing funds at a bank cash desk.
Providing the use of an electronic version of the Ukrainian pension fund. For example, you can now find out the movement of accrued funds in your personal account on the official website of the fund, and receive a pension certificate to the specified email address.

Human rights activists have declared violations of international rights regarding the inviolability of the home during inspections, as well as freedom of movement.

Human rights activists and lawyers obtained a decision from the Deputy Minister to reduce the circle of persons subject to verification, provided that they were identified.

The project “Pensions for uncontrolled geographical zones - without a migrant’s certificate” is under consideration. This document was developed by public human rights organizations.

This project, in particular, provides for:

What does the project involve?

Canceling paper document flow and converting it to digital format. Recognition of the right to the ability to send documents remotely via electronic communication, without personally visiting the PFU office in the controlled territory.
Increasing the time period for exercising the right to receive an unclaimed amount, since not all people have time to claim it in the shortest possible time due to periodically renewed military actions.

The main requirement formulated in the program registered in the Verkhovna Rada under No. 6692 is the possibility of canceling the issuance of a migrant’s certificate. The chances of this demand being approved by the Verkhovna Rada are slim, but public human rights organizations will continue to insist on this.

For persons with limited mobility, the draft requires the delivery of means of personal identification by social organizations, including international ones. An officially registered authorized representative has the right to draw up any paperwork for a person with limited mobility.

It is also possible to transfer documents through an official. This requires:

prepare a corresponding application in advance;
submit the application to the PFU with the help of housing and communal services employees or members of local village councils.

The same bodies are empowered to issue certificates of assigned migrant status. The document can also be issued by a person who does not have Ukrainian citizenship, but lives in the country on the basis of permanent residence (permanent residence).

The basis for assigning refugee or migrant status is an anti-terrorist operation in the formed republics of the LPR or DPR.

The UN called the demands of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) related to the need to increase the minimum retirement age for Ukrainians inhumane. However, this question remains open.

Watch the video: innovations in the pension system for residents of Donbass.

Who can receive a pension?

According to the law on providing for migrants, this category of citizens can rightfully count on such accruals as:

For old age - upon reaching the required retirement age and having at least 15 years of experience. The accumulation of the pension coefficient is important here. It should be equal to 30 points. This indicator depends on the amount of insurance contributions made.
For disability - after the degree of labor loss has been officially established and a medical examination has been carried out by the MSEC of the Russian Federation.
For the loss of a breadwinner - upon official confirmation of the death of a family member who was entrusted with the responsibility to support children or the elderly.
By length of service - the presence of work experience accumulated in hazardous industries. They must be included in a special list approved by law. It is equally important to occupy a position that fully complies with the requirements of the ETKS of the Russian Federation.

Answers to common questions

Question No. 1: Can a forced migrant count on humanitarian assistance on Russian territory?

Answer: Yes, if official status is issued. Humanitarian aid is provided mainly to residents of Donbass and includes food, clothing, and medicine.

Question No. 2: Can I, as a forced migrant, count on free legal assistance in Russia?

Answer: Yes. Forced migrants are provided with lawyers both by government agencies and by many law firms. The service is provided free of charge.

Answers to the most pressing questions on the topic

Below are answers to questions that most concern Ukrainian citizens displaced from the ATO zone.

We stopped paying our pension, what should we do?

In the event that they have stopped paying a pension, you must immediately contact the Pension Fund to find out the reasons for this. As a rule, the reason is that the citizen was not at his place of residence for more than 60 days. In this case, you need to go through the entire procedure again. Including registering, receiving a certificate of migrant status, and so on.

How to restore payment if blocked

Payments to internally displaced persons are subject to serious government control. In this regard, the status of these citizens is constantly checked by social security employees. One of the grounds for termination of payment is the absence of a citizen at the place of residence at the time of the inspection. In this case, the status of a migrant may be cancelled, and therefore the citizen will need to reconfirm it before again counting on a pension.

Payment delay since June - when to expect

Delays in payments of pension money are largely due to the deficit of the Pension Fund of Ukraine, as well as verification procedures for recipients of money.

Back in April last year, the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine adopted Resolution No. 335, according to which all existing debts to pensioners are accumulated and will be paid in a special manner. However, at the moment, the procedure for repaying these debts has not been developed. In this regard, it is not possible to talk about the timing of when the money will be paid in full.

July 2, 2013 Information on pension provision for persons arriving in the Russian Federation

Dear compatriots!

Pension provision for persons arriving in the Russian Federation from Armenia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, and Ukraine is carried out in accordance with the Agreement on guarantees of the rights of citizens of member states of the Commonwealth of Independent States in the field of pension provision dated March 13, 1992.

If you moved to Russia and your length of work experience is at least 5 years, then upon reaching the ages of 55 and 60 years (women and men), an old-age labor pension will be established: - for persons who have acquired citizenship of the Russian Federation (i.e. presence of a passport of a citizen of the Russian Federation); — for foreign citizens and stateless persons with a residence permit (i.e. a document confirming the right to permanent residence in the Russian Federation).

Please note that the retirement age in Russia is earlier than in these countries. For those who were already recipients of a pension in the state at their previous place of residence, an old-age labor pension has also been established in the Russian Federation, subject to the termination of payment of the pension at their previous place of residence and permanent residence in the Russian Federation. To establish a pension on the territory of Russia, you should contact the territorial body of the Pension Fund of the Russian Federation at your place of residence. The length of service taken into account when assigning a pension in the Russian Federation includes the following periods: - periods of work in the territory of the states parties to the Agreement, incl. on the territory of the former USSR that occurred before January 1, 2002. - periods after January 1, 2002 on the territory of these states, subject to payment of insurance contributions for pensions to the competent authorities of the states where the work took place. The pension is calculated from earnings for any 60 consecutive months of work before 2002.

Thus, before leaving for Russia to live or work, you should take with you the following documents: - work book; — a certificate from the competent authority of the country where you worked after January 1, 2002, confirming the payment of insurance contributions for pensions; - a certificate of earnings for any 60 consecutive months of work before 2002, issued by the organization where you worked or by an archival authority. In this case, the certificate must contain the basis for issuance, an indication of the monetary units in which wages were calculated during the period presented, and must be certified by the signatures and seal of the organization. - marriage certificate, divorce certificate (and in their absence, a certificate from the registry office) - in case of change of surname; - birth certificates of children (with notes on the issue of their passport).

Attention! In order to timely complete or request missing documents required for granting a pension on the territory of the Russian Federation, it is recommended to contact the Pension Fund Office at your place of residence in advance with all available documents.

Minimum old age pension

The minimum old-age pension will increase by 10% in 2012. Thus, the amount of the old-age pension will be 9,683 rubles.

It is reported that the labor pension of Russian citizens will increase even more – by 14.1%. In 2011, the average pension was already indexed by 8.8%.

The payment of funded pensions will amount to 5.2 trillion. rubles next year, the deficit will be 1.3 trillion.

Meanwhile, today the concept of a minimum old-age pension is in Russian legislation. If the amount of financial support for a pensioner is less than the subsistence level, then an additional payment is established for the pension. At the same time, the additional payment is set at such a level as to reach the subsistence level. Thus, the question of what is the minimum old-age pension can be answered as follows: 5122 rubles, i.e. This is the cost of living in the Russian Federation this year.

However, according to statistics, the real pension of Russians did not increase, but decreased by 0.3 percent, while the nominal increased by 8.7 percent.

The size of the old-age pension, according to the law, is determined from the funded and insurance shares of the labor pension.

Based on the legislation, 173-FZ dated December 17, 2001, the length of service includes the period of work while on the territory of the Russian Federation, if during the period of work the employer paid contributions to the Pension Fund of the Russian Federation. If work or other activities were performed not on the territory of our country, in accordance with the conditions provided for by law, then they are also included in the length of service.

The length of service also includes periods of military service and other service, in accordance with the law, as well as the period of maternity leave, receiving benefits in case of disability, unemployment, time spent in prison for wrongfully convicted people, and time caring for a disabled person.

It is expected that 2012 will bring an increase in pensions for military retirees. At the moment, the military pension is no more than eight thousand rubles. So, from the first of January this situation will change.

There is a point of view that pensions will not increase following rising prices, but will decrease. By 2021, according to some analysts, the pension will be only one-quarter of today's pension. Indeed, currently 1/10 of the country’s wage fund is transferred to the pension fund, although the replacement rate (i.e., the ratio of the average pension level to the average salary level) in Russia is only 38 percent. A strange situation is emerging, thanks to which large amounts of money are being transferred to the pension system, while real pensions are small and do not grow along with the rate of price growth.

To solve this problem, the state is considering increasing the retirement age. However, given life expectancy in Russia, which is decreasing every year, such a decision cannot be called the most rational.

The only way out of resolving the pension issue would be to improve the state of the economy as a whole. However, this is only at first glance. Indeed, in fact, economic growth in Russia is associated with no fewer problems than with the pension system.