What is the minimum length of service for calculating a pension in Russia?

Retirement Options

In Russia there are 3 options for pension insurance for citizens:

1. According to the age.
2. Due to disability.
3. In case of loss of a breadwinner.

An insurance pension is monetary compensation for citizens who received wages and made contributions, as well as compensation upon the death of a breadwinner for disabled dependent family members. The following are entitled to receive this type of benefit:

• citizens of the Russian Federation insured under Federal Law No. 167 of December 15, 2001;
• disabled persons due to the loss of a breadwinner;
• foreign citizens or stateless persons permanently residing in Russia and insured under Federal Law No. 167 of December 15, 2001.

An employee’s general labor pension consists of an insurance and funded part.

Since July 24, 2009, Federal Law No. 213, when calculating pensions, introduced the concept of valorization, in other words, an increase in the amount of pension capital accumulated before 01/01/1991. For work experience acquired during the Soviet period, citizens receive 10% of the calculated pension capital and plus 1% for each full year worked.

Legislative norms

When determining the amount of benefits for pensioners, the criterion of primary importance is length of service. The more a citizen has officially worked, the higher his salary will be in the future. The question of the criteria for length of service and the periods included in it are spelled out in Federal Law-173, Art. eleven.

According to the law, length of service can be insurance (labor) and special. Work experience implies the total period of employment, excluding breaks, for which the organization makes contributions.

Special length of service represents years of employment in certain positions (teacher, physician), in a specific industry (military personnel, Ministry of Internal Affairs), in harmful/hazardous industries (fishing industry, on ships), in the Far North, etc. A separate type of special experience is length of service in which You can retire regardless of age (aviation employees, etc.).

Insurance old-age pension

Since January 2015, to receive an old-age pension, 3 conditions must be met:

1. Reaching the legally established age.
2. Having a minimum required length of experience.
3. The number of pension points achieved.

After the approval of the new version of the law on insurance pensions, Federal Law No. 400 of December 28, 2003, women from 60 years of age and men from 65 receive the right to retire. Until this age, a citizen is required to work for 10 years in 2021. With each subsequent year, the rules change, and the minimum total length of service increases. In 2021, his term should be at least 11 years, and by 2024 and later - 15.

Points for receiving a pension are a relatively new concept for Russians; they were legalized in 2015. They are calculated depending on the citizen’s salary level. The average monthly official income of the employee will be taken into account when calculating the pension. For those retiring in 2021, it is enough to score 16.2 points, in 2023 – 25.8. And by 2025, in order to accrue an insurance pension, you must accumulate at least 30 points. This attitude encourages citizens themselves to strive to receive official wages with proportional taxation, and not to rush into retirement immediately after reaching retirement age.

The pension assigned by the state directly depends on how long the employee worked and how much he contributed monthly to the Pension Fund. Conscientious employers with legal accounting make deductions from employee salaries on a monthly basis, thus increasing the number of points. From the moment of retirement, points are recalculated at the then current rate. In 2021, the point is equivalent to 87 rubles 24 kopecks.

Citizens who have worked in the Far North for 15 years, and in equivalent areas for 20 years, have the right to early retirement. Men can retire at the age of 60, women - 55. Such citizens upon retirement receive an additional privilege - an allowance for northern experience in difficult conditions. The increasing coefficient depends on the area: for example, among the Karelians the multiplier is 1.15%, and among the Chukchi and those who worked in the Arctic Ocean regions it is 2.0%.

Citizens of Russia with standard experience of 42 years for men and 37 years for women have the right to early retirement, 24 months before reaching retirement age. But in this case, the man must be at least 60 years old, and the woman – 55.

Who can retire in 2021?

Three conditions must be met in order to receive the right to receive a pension this year:

1. Women who turned 55 years old in the first half of 2021. They can retire in the second half of 2021, when they turn 56 years and 6 months old.
2. Men who turned 60 in the first half of 2021. They can retire in 2021 when they turn 61 years and 6 months old.
3. Women and men who work in the public service and who turned 55.5 years old in the second half of 2021. They will be able to retire no earlier than the 1st half of 2021, when they turn 56.5 and 60.5 years old.

What indicators will affect the recalculation

The size of the pension benefit is not a fixed amount, it varies depending on:

1. presence or new appearance of dependents;
2. exceeding the threshold of 80 years, when the state introduces additional payments;
3. the pensioner did not retire, but continued to work and thereby increased the number of accumulated points;
4. there have been changes in the cost of living that were legally approved;
5. within the region of residence of the pensioner, regional allowances and payments are provided;
6. legislators approved the indexation of pension payments to the level of inflation.

If any of these indicators or several change at the same time, the payment amount is recalculated.

Receiving benefits and working: are they acceptable at the same time?

Retirement age is a time when you can simply retire. And receive compensation from the state for the fact that a citizen has paid taxes to the budget for a certain period. The income portion of the pension fund is largely formed due to contributions from individuals. But many retirees have to continue working because there is not enough money.

The new legislation allows you to simultaneously receive benefits and keep your job. The State Duma tried to prohibit receiving additional income at the legislative level. The project was aimed at reducing government costs, but failed.

Additional periods of service

The pension insurance period includes the following periods of activity:

• military service or any other equivalent period;
• the period for receiving compulsory social insurance benefits during periods of temporary incapacity for work;
• child care time from 0 to 18 months, but not more than 72 months in total for all children;
• the period while the person receives unemployment benefits;
• the period allotted to the employee by the employment center under the program of resettlement to another area with subsequent employment;
• unjustified stay in places of deprivation of liberty or detention during the investigation;
• time to care for a disabled person of group 1, an 80-year-old person or a disabled child;
• the period during which the employee was suspended from work on unproven charges;
• the period of stay with a spouse working abroad in diplomatic missions, but for a total period of up to 60 months.

All described periods are added to the length of service if before their onset the employee performed labor duties and deductions were made from his salary to the Pension Fund. Study is not included in the list of periods for increasing work experience. Planned vacations, sick leave and other similar periods are included in the length of service, because mandatory contributions to the pension fund are made from the employee’s vacation and sick pay.

Here comes the pension...

A pension is a monthly cash payment to people who have reached a specified age. While Russian residents were earning their pensions, reforms to this system were carried out repeatedly. Among other things, the required period of work activity changed.

Many pensioners in Russia have worked for 40–45 years (or more), but the state does not count this length of service.

One of the measures for determining payments is the insurance period. This criterion was introduced by law and affects the right to receive payments. If a person has not worked out the established minimum years, then even if he lives to the age established by law, the due pension will not be accrued. In this case, upon reaching a certain age, social benefits will be assigned.

The law on reforming the pension system guarantees social benefits for women born in 1964 and men born in 1959. In 2021, the retirement age will increase by 1 year. This group of pensioners, according to the provided benefit, will be able to apply for a pension in July 2021, that is, six months earlier than by law.

Long-term bonuses

Long service of 30, 35, 40 years does not give the right to receive separate additional payments and pension supplements. The entire period worked by a citizen is taken into account in the initial calculation of payments. The approved law provides for clauses on awarding increasing coefficients for deferring retirement from 1 to 10 years.

Veterans of Labor receive additional payments to their pension, but it is important to take into account the limitation. If the title is awarded in a specific regional subject of the federation, then the bonuses will apply only there; if at the federal level, then throughout the district. To be granted status, a citizen must have:

• more than 20 years of experience for women, 25 for men;
• thanks or certificates from the President of the Russian Federation;
• state orders, medals or titles;
• intradepartmental award, which is included in the list of awards for awarding status.

Raising the retirement age

The initial version of the bill, internal number 489161, was prepared by specialists from the Ministry of Economic Development and submitted to the State Duma last summer. After a short discussion, the draft amendments to the pension legislation are adopted by deputies in the first reading, without modifications.

It provided for an increase in the age for receiving a pension by five years for the male part of the working population and by seven years for women. From now on, the retirement age for the weaker half of the population was to be 63 years.

The developers of the bill motivated such a disproportion by the experience of Western countries, where the difference in retirement age between the sexes is not as great as in the Russian Federation. But the disproportionate increase has sparked widespread protests from women, human rights activists and labor relations experts. As a result, the President of the Russian Federation himself was forced to intervene in the situation.

In a televised address in August 2021. Putin called for changing the provisions of the bill towards reducing the retirement age for the female part of the workforce. The President called on deputies and drafters of the law to be more “careful towards Russian women.” As a result, the bill was sent for revision, as a result of which the age for women to receive pension payments was reduced to 60 years.

Where to submit documents

To receive an old-age insurance pension, you should contact the Pension Fund at your place of residence or submit a package of documents to the multifunctional center. If the pensioner continues to work, then there is no need to collect any papers to index payments. The Pension Fund carries out recalculation annually on August 1. When an employee applies for the title of Veteran of Labor, he should contact the social security department.

When calculating an old-age pension, a citizen submits:

• passport;
• work book and other documents confirming periods of work experience;
• salary statement for 5 years of work until 2002;
• certificate of presence of dependents;
• documents confirming the change of last name, first name or patronymic;
• additional documents upon request of the Pension Fund.

Types of work experience

There are several types of work experience:

1. Self-employed, individual entrepreneurs, lawyers, dentists, notaries.
2. People who serve and are not associated with commercial activities and production.
3. It is necessary to highlight employment in the field of law or health care and public sector employees.
4. Employees of public and private companies.

For many years, the minimum length of service to receive a pension was considered to be 5 years. After changes in pension legislation, this rule changed. From 2015, one year is added, so that by 2024 the minimum work experience will be 15 years.

If you don't have enough points

Those Russian citizens who have reached retirement age under the new legislation, but have not accumulated the established minimum points, or those who have no work experience at all, will not receive an insurance pension monthly payment. The state accrues a social pension to such persons. To establish and pay it, men must reach the age of 70, and women 65. But the transition is as smooth as the general increase in the retirement age for working citizens.

In the case where a Russian has not reached the new legally prescribed age, but cannot continue professional activities for health reasons, he has the right to collect documents for the award of a disability pension. Those persons who have been identified with serious impairments in their life activities apply for a social disability pension, regardless of how old they are. Workers who have been injured at work or due to other life circumstances also apply for a disability group and a social pension from the state. More information about pensions on Brobank in the Pensions section.

about the author

Klavdiya Treskova - higher education with qualification “Economist”, with specializations “Economics and Management” and “Computer Technologies” at PSU. She worked in a bank in positions from operator to acting. Head of the Department for servicing private and corporate clients. Every year she successfully passed certifications, education and training in banking services. Total work experience in the bank is more than 15 years. [email protected]

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Pension points: what are they?

In 2015, it was decided to calculate pensions according to new rules. To earn it, you must earn at least 30 pension points. This is extremely unfavorable for those who have little work experience.

Previously, to assign pensions, it was necessary to reach retirement age, as well as have work or insurance experience. Salary and years of work were taken into account. In 2015, an individual pension coefficient was introduced. It is presented in the form of points for each year of service. To receive payments, you must complete your service, but the amount of contributions must be no less than the established amount. The number of points depends on the salary.

Comments: 4

Your comment (question) If you have questions about this article, you can tell us. Our team consists of only experienced experts and specialists with specialized education. We will try to help you in this topic:

Author of the article: Klavdiya Treskova

Consultant, author Popovich Anna

Financial author Olga Pikhotskaya

1. Sergey
   06/14/2021 at 18:28 Why do you need a salary statement for 5 years of work before 2002, and not a statement for the last 5 years of work? The amount of payments before 2002 is several times less than in 2021.
   Reply ↓ Anna Popovich
   06/14/2021 at 20:28

   Dear Sergey, the list of documents is established by the Pension Fund and is necessary for the correct calculation of the pension.

   Reply ↓

If a citizen did not work, is he entitled to a pension benefit?

If a Russian has not worked a single day in his life, then he is not entitled to a pension. But such citizens can count on state support in the form of old-age social benefits. The legislation strictly fixes the amount of such benefits. But it is indexed annually in proportion to the pension subsistence level.

Social pensions begin to be paid to older people 5 years later than usual, i.e. at 65 and 70 years old. This age threshold will be finalized in 2028. But during the transition stage, the age for social benefits will be lower. For example, for 2021-2022 it is 61.5 and 66.5 years, and for 2024 – 63 and 68 years.

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What is not included in the insurance period

All other periods of time not provided for by law.

Counting Features

When entering data into the calculator, you must adhere to the requirements prescribed in the relevant article of the Federal Law on the calculation of pensions.

1. Calendar order . It is necessary to take into account the dates indicated in the work book or tax returns (for individual entrepreneurs). If two or more insurance periods coincide, as a rule, one of them is taken into account (more profitable for the pension recipient).
2. Only RF . If a citizen has the right to a pension according to foreign laws, then to the extent that they do not coincide with the norms of the Russian Federation, this time will not be taken into account when calculating the length of service.
3. Labor in subsistence farming . Self-supporting people, members of farms and various communities can include their labor time in their length of service if they have made contributions to the Pension Fund.
4. Work for an individual . If a person worked for another person in accordance with a concluded contract, this period is considered an insurance period if the corresponding contributions were paid.
5. Copyright royalties . Persons who sold copyrights to their works, as well as licenses, patents, etc., if they paid contributions to the Pension Fund of the Russian Federation from the funds received no less than the established amount, can include a period proportional to their contributions in their length of service.
6. Does not have retroactive effect . If, according to the previously effective legislation of the Russian Federation, certain periods were included in the length of service, which was subsequently changed, they can be added to their total insurance experience.

Basic terms

Total length of service is the number of years worked by a person throughout his life, excluding payments made to the Pension Fund.

It is known that years of labor activity, during which no transfers were made from a citizen or his employer to his PF account, are not taken into account when determining the size of the pension. In this regard, not all entries in the work book are accepted when calculating pension benefits.

After the implementation of the pension reform in 2002, a new formulation “total insurance experience” was officially recognized, which takes into account only those years when the citizen or his employer transferred insurance payments to the Pension Fund.

It is on the basis of the total insurance period that the amount of pension payments and sick leave payments are calculated, and benefits are accrued.

Work experience is an integral part of the insurance period. The term “total length of service” officially remains in force, but, out of habit, the total length of service is often referred to as “total length of service”.

According to Art. 12 No. 400-FZ, service in the ranks of the armed forces of the Russian Federation is included in the total length of service and is important in determining its types, which, starting from 2002, are used in calculations related to pensions:

• Labor. Since 2002, this type of length of service is not directly related to the pension.
• Insurance. It is directly taken into account when determining a pension.
• Preferential. Ensures early retirement.

The basis for accruing special (preferential) length of service is service in the army under particularly difficult conditions, for example:

• service in “hot spots”, the number of days increases by 3 times;
• submarine soldiers, paratroopers;
• harsh climatic conditions, dangerous, accompanied by a risk to life, search and rescue, fire fighting operations.

The above rules apply to military service performed at any time, including before 2002.

How long does a woman need to work to receive a pension?

For some women, the charges differ from the standard ones. The following accrual principles are currently in effect:

• length of service is generally 30 years, the minimum is 9 years, but the number of years will increase;
• hazardous work guarantees leaving work ahead of schedule;
• the period of maternity leave is included in the length of service;
• if there are two (or more) children, the period of labor activity is reduced to 12 years;
• for women working on the Extreme Server, the term is reduced to 15 years.

Mothers of many children become happy great-grandmothers: you won’t get bored with such a big company

Although women's work experience is determined in the same way as men's, there are downward differences.

How many points do you need in 2020?

This is a pressing issue, since in addition to length of service, when assigning a pension, attention will also be paid to the number of points.

In 2021, future retirees must have at least 18.6 points. By 2025, the number of required points will reach 30.

The requirements for future pensioners have been significantly increased, but the process of transition to new conditions will be gradual. If your indicators are missing a few points, you can find out how to score them. After this, the pension will be assigned.

The pension reform should not be perceived as something negative, since along with increased requirements for pensioners, the amount of payments also increases.

The amount is constantly indexed, and additional benefits are assigned.

Experience for early retirement

Such length of service occurs when a citizen works in harmful and dangerous conditions.

For them to be recorded there must be:

• entries in the work book about appointment to a position that falls under a similar category;
• the enterprise must have permits to conduct such activities;
• the employer must also make additional insurance contributions.

Important: if all the conditions for confirming special length of service are missing, the pensioner is included in the category of ordinary pensioners, and the preferential length of service expires.