After the collapse of the Soviet Union, all countries that were its republics had common forms of building a social security system. Most states tried to preserve these models, however, for objective reasons, not all were able to implement this in practice.
Thus, pension systems in many countries of the former USSR have undergone quite serious changes. It was not possible to preserve the Soviet model, since the difficult economic and demographic conditions in which they found themselves did not allow it.
In particular, the pension system of modern Ukraine, which, although similar to the Russian one, has now reached a dead end and is in need of radical reforms. Its features will be discussed further.
Structure of the pension system in Ukraine
Ukraine currently has a state pension system. The purpose of its functioning is to provide material support for elderly and disabled citizens.
The pension system in Ukraine is based on solidarity principles . In practice, this means that funds for payments to current pensioners are generated from contributions from working citizens. At the same time, this system shows itself to be ineffective in Ukrainian conditions.
Thus, at the end of 2021, there were more than 11 million pensioners living in the country, which constitutes a significant percentage of the country’s population. According to unofficial data, every third Ukrainian is a recipient of pension benefits.
Due to this, as well as the difficult economic situation, PFU has a significant cash deficit. Thus, it is known that in 2019, more than 15% of the total budget of the state fund were funds specially allocated for pension purposes from the country’s budget.
Contributions to the Pension Fund themselves are mandatory for all categories of working citizens. Employers are required to pay a single social contribution (USC) for hired employees.
Attention! The size of the unified social contribution in Ukraine is not fixed and depends on the amount of wages, amounting to 22% of it.
In addition to the state pension system, there are dozens of private pension funds in the country that offer citizens services for the formation of non-state pensions.
Ukrainian legislation distinguishes three types of such organizations:
- Open. Any person can enter into contracts with them without exception. Open NPFs offer various private programs for citizens that allow them to accumulate sufficient funds for a secure old age.
- Corporate : These funds are created by large organizations, and their activities are aimed exclusively at providing private pensions to the employees of these companies. A corporate pension often acts as part of a social package.
- Professional . As a rule, the founders of such organizations are professional associations. Participants in pension plans offered by such funds can only be members of the relevant trade unions.
Reference! In general, the non-state pension system in Ukraine was largely copied from models adopted in EU countries, but was not widely used in the country.
Pension Fund of Ukraine
The body implementing the policy to ensure the functioning of the state provision system for disabled citizens is the Pension Fund of Ukraine.
Its central office is located in the capital of the country - Kyiv at the address: Bastionnaya Street, building 9.
In the regions of Ukraine there are territorial bodies that implement the provisions of the legislation on state pension provision within a specific region.
You can contact the PFU by calling the contact center hotline – 0-800-503-753.
A call to the contact center is completely free for all numbers registered in Ukraine.
The PFU website operates on the Internet. On this resource, the user can obtain comprehensive information about the activities of the fund, types of pensions and the rules for calculating them, and find out the latest news.
In addition, the website contains contact information for contacting the fund, including the addresses of territorial branches in the regions of Ukraine.
Through the pension fund website, citizens can go to the electronic services portal, where it is possible to create a personal account.
Registration on the portal is possible in two ways:
- by submitting an appropriate application to the territorial body of the PFU;
- through the use of an electronic digital signature.
After registering on the PFU electronic services portal, the insured person will be able to monitor the status of his pension account , submit applications and receive the necessary documents online.
It is also useful to read: Pension fund in the DPR
An idea of the coefficients included in the calculation
The duration of the period worked at state enterprises is determined using a special coefficient designated for the total length of service. This value is calculated using the formula: Ks = Sg x 0.0135, where Sg is the years worked by the pensioner.
Before 2000, in order to determine the pension length, it was enough to provide a work book and other papers certifying employment; after July 1 of this period, the data is provided by the personal account of the PFU.
To determine another coefficient that is important for accounting for monthly earnings, use the formula: Kzm = Zm: Zs, where:
- Kzm – monthly earnings coefficient
- Zm – payment for one month’s work
- Zs – average salary recorded in the same month throughout Ukraine
Calculators are allowed to exclude lower rates at the time of sampling earnings; this period should not exceed 10%. The remainder of the time worked after eliminating months with a small salary will be included in the main pension calculation; it must be separately designated - H.
For the main formula, you will need to find out the value of the overall coefficient of total earnings. You need to collect the monthly coefficients, add them up, and divide the resulting figure by “H”.
It should be noted that there was a lot of debate among legislators whether or not to include wages earned before 1.07. 2000. The President, by his decision, ended the disagreements and the money received before this period will be included in the calculation.
Pensioners who receive security without taking these funds into account have the right to apply to the Pension Fund for recalculation.
Conditions for retirement
When determining the right to receive a pension in Ukraine, two criteria are used - age and insurance length of the citizen.
Thus, the country is currently undergoing a pension reform, one of the goals of which is to increase the age for retirement.
In 2021, Ukrainians retire depending on their accumulated insurance experience. The latter should be understood as periods when payments of a single social contribution to the Pension Fund were made for the employee.
Important! If a citizen worked before 2004, then his work experience is counted as insurance.
Thus, Ukraine has adopted a system according to which the duration of work and year of birth directly influence the age of retirement.
What is a state pension?
These are monthly cash payments that are paid in a mandatory state manner, by the pension insurance fund, to pensioners who have reached a certain age, in accordance with the law.
The retirement age in Ukraine is constantly changing. There are dozens of regulations that monitor and regulate this situation. Special systems produce certain cash accruals according to age. In addition to the basic accrual system, which is established by law, there are some benefits for other categories of citizens. This applies to military personnel, scientific workers, civil servants and Chernobyl victims. These systems perform separate calculations in accordance with current laws.
Retirement age in Ukraine
Currently, Ukraine is undergoing a reform of the pension system, thanks to which financial support begins to be paid depending on the amount of length of service.
So, in 2021, Ukrainians can retire at 60, but at the same time receive only a minimum pension . To do this, they will need to work for at least 27 years (depending on age).
Pension benefits are paid in full from the age of 63, and, depending on age, the insurance period should be between 17-27 years.
As a result of this reform, in 2028, in order to retire at the age of 60, women and men will need at least 35 years of insurance experience. Citizens who do not accumulate the required number of years of experience will have to work until they are 63 or even 65 years old.
Zp = Sun x (Sk: K), where:
Zp - wages (income) of the insured person for calculating the pension, in hryvnias;
Sun - average salary (income) in Ukraine, from which insurance premiums are paid, for the three calendar years preceding the year of application for a pension.
Sk - the sum of wage (income) coefficients for each month (Kz1 + Kz2 + Kz3 + ... + Kzn)
K - insurance period for months, taken into account to determine the wage (income) coefficient of the insured person.
The salary coefficient for each month of insurance coverage is determined by the formula:
Who can retire early?
In accordance with Ukrainian legislation, certain categories of citizens have the right to count on pension provision earlier than the due date.
So, first of all, this applies to workers in hazardous and hazardous industries. These include miners.
In addition, the following are entitled to a preferential pension:
- mothers of many children;
- mothers raising a disabled child;
- visually impaired;
- participants in armed conflicts;
- persons with rare genetic diseases (dwarfism).
Also, military personnel and law enforcement officers retire much earlier. However, it should be noted that they are assigned a pension in a special manner - depending on their length of service.
What has changed for doctors and teachers
Pedagogical activities and work in the healthcare sector involve increased psycho-emotional stress, which leads to occupational diseases and early disability. In this regard, for these categories of workers in Ukraine, a benefit associated with early retirement has been established. The main condition for this is the presence of a sufficient number of years of specialized experience.
The changes taking place in the country related to pensions have affected doctors and teachers in full. Specialized experience is being raised in stages, and in 2024, for these categories of specialists, in order to receive benefits, it will be necessary to work for at least 30 years in the relevant positions.
Amount of pension payments
The size of the Ukrainian pension remains one of the lowest in Europe. Even the periodic indexation of payments made by the country's leadership cannot save such an unseemly situation.
Thus, in January 2021, the minimum old-age pension in Ukraine was 1,638 hryvnia. At the same time, on average, Ukrainian pensioners receive 3,083 hryvnia.
Important! Ukrainian legislation provides for a “ceiling” of pension payments. Thus, the maximum pension in the country cannot exceed 16,380 hryvnia.
How is the pension calculated?
You can learn how to calculate your pension from the video below.
The calculation of pension contributions by age is carried out using a special calculator by multiplying the following components:
- salary 36 months before retirement;
- ratio of wages and length of service.
The formula for calculating a pension in Ukraine is as follows: P (amount of pension contributions in hryvnia) = Zs (average earnings for 36 months) x Kzp (salary coefficient) x Ks (experience coefficient).
You can calculate the size of your future pension yourself using a pension calculator. You can download the calculator on the official website of the PFU.
What is the average salary in Ukraine can be found on our website by following the link.
Amount of pension contributions by age
If there are serious reasons, the following will be assigned to the basic amount of pension contributions:
- promotions;
- additional payments;
- allowances.
Today, the size of the “minimum wage” is equal to the subsistence level of disabled Ukrainians.
From December 1, the cost of living for able-bodied Ukrainians increased by 78 UAH
For each “overtime” full year of work experience, the amount of the calculated bonus increases by 1% of the amount of pension payments.
What documents do you need to have with you?
The list of documents that will need to be submitted to the Ukrainian pension fund includes an application drawn up in the form prescribed by law. The application must be accompanied by:
- Original + copy of the applicant’s identity document.
- Certificate of registration of the applicant.
- Original + copy of the document from the registry office.
- Application + current account number at an authorized banking institution.
- Original + copy of document confirming work experience.
- TIN.
- Certificate from the military registration and enlistment office.
- Original + copy of diploma.
- Certificate of salary level (provided at the request of the applicant).
The documents required for granting a pension can be submitted both in original and in the form of copies certified by a notary
All certificates can be provided to the Pension Fund by both the pensioner himself and his authorized representative. The third party must have a notarized power of attorney.
All powers of attorney issued in non-CIS countries must be certified with an apostille. Powers of attorney executed in countries with which Ukraine has an agreement on the provision of legal assistance do not require special certification.
Documents drawn up in a foreign language must be translated and certified by a notary.
In April 2021, the procedure for calculating pensions in Ukraine was changed. According to the new law, in order to calculate pension funds, Ukrainians will have to submit a certificate of income for any continuous 60 months, up to 06/30/2000.
Minimum and maximum pensions
The spread between the minimum, average and maximum pension in Ukraine is quite large.
Data on the amount of pension contributions (hryvnia) for representatives of various professions are available in the diagram.
The size of pensions for the whole country is presented in the table.
| Maximum | 17,690 UAH. |
| Average | 3414 UAH |
| Minimum | 1769 UAH |
The vast majority of Ukrainians receive a pension in the amount of UAH 2.5 thousand.
Today, about 1 thousand people receive the maximum pension every month.
Important nuances
If the pensioner continues to work, then the amount of assistance from the state is 85% of the old-age pension. If his length of service increases by 2 years, the pension is recalculated.
When calculating pensions for working pensioners, the size of their salary may also be taken into account. Recalculation is carried out 1 time/24 months, at the request of an elderly person. He will be able to do this at any time after acquiring new experience.
For working pensioners, pension recalculation is carried out once every 2 years
Many widows are interested in the possibility of transferring to their husband's pension. According to Ukrainian lawyers, the concept of “husband’s pension” does not exist. This formulation is used by PFU officials to assign small pension payments.
If a woman’s husband received a large pension, she has the right to apply for a survivor’s pension. This is not the deceased spouse's pension or ½ of his benefit. This is a full-fledged type of pension contributions for the widow herself.
You can find out about pensions in Bulgaria, Canada, Greece and Cyprus on our website.
The amount of the benefit is calculated based on the husband’s length of service and salary. It amounts to 50% of the old age pension. This is true even if the deceased received disability benefits or did not receive any assistance from the state at all, but had the necessary length of service.
Considering that the pension formula takes into account the average Ukrainian three-year salary, the calculated benefit will be significantly more than what the deceased spouse received.
More information about the standard of living in Ukraine can be found on our website.
Will pension reform be carried out?
Due to the ineffectiveness of the current pension model in Ukraine, many citizens and experts insist on its reform. Thus, the opinion is repeatedly expressed about raising the retirement age with a concomitant increase in the average amount of material support. directly , but today the country is already tightening requirements for future pensioners.
Pensions in Ukraine are among the lowest in Europe. The government of the country is currently taking a number of actions to tighten the requirements for receiving payments. Despite this, the indexation of payments occurs extremely slowly and, accordingly, pensions grow lower than inflation.
Registration of an old-age pension
As the law states, a Ukrainian who has sufficient insurance experience and has reached a certain age can become a pensioner. Registration of a pension is possible after submitting the following set of documents:
- passport;
- document on social state insurance/identification code;
- completed application;
- work book;
- diplomas/other documents confirming that a person completed his studies in the period before January 1, 2004;
- paper confirming the place of official registration (address);
- Bank account number;
- certificate from work about the amount of salary for the last 5 years;
- military ID;
- certificates confirming marriage, birth of children.
It is necessary to bring original documents and photocopies to the Pension Fund. There are a lot of free services on the Internet today that allow you to calculate the amount of your future pension using an online calculator.
Carefully study the legislative framework (laws, additional provisions, updates) as you approach retirement age. By being properly informed, a lot of disappointment can be avoided.
