The condition for receiving a “dream pension” of 60 thousand rubles in old age has been named

The state long-term savings program will not help accumulate such an amount

To maintain the desired quality of life in retirement, the average Russian needs 59.2 thousand rubles monthly. This figure, obtained based on the results of a recent social survey, is almost three times the average amount of current old-age insurance payments of 21.8 thousand. For the bulk of the population, it is unattainable, and according to experts, even the advertised state long-term savings program, starting on January 1, 2024, will not help.

Let us remind you that it involves co-financing from the state for three years – if the person does not withdraw funds from the account for 15 years. According to officials, the project will attract 300 billion rubles, and citizens (the head of the Ministry of Finance Siluanov expects 2 million potential participants) will receive additional income in the future. Participation is voluntary; it is possible to conclude agreements with various non-state pension funds (NPFs). Savings will be insured in the same way as bank deposits, but for twice the amount – 2.8 million rubles.

The gap between the expected and actual size of pensions in Russia has always been huge and remains so today. In particular, due to low indexation and widespread gray remuneration schemes (“salaries in an envelope”). Meanwhile, according to the convention of the International Labor Organization (ILO), the recommended coefficient for replacing lost earnings with a pension should be no less than 40%. In a number of countries it reaches 75%, but in Russia it does not even reach 27%.

A long-term savings program could change the situation – but, according to independent experts, only in theory, in reality this will not work. If only because in the current situation of high political and economic uncertainty, few people would think of starting to save at least twenty percent of their salary for old age at a relatively young age – and do this regularly, not paying attention to concerns about Over decades, money can either disappear or depreciate. Not to mention the fact that you need to have a stable and high income by domestic standards, which not everyone can boast of.

“The funded pension system, which involves the participation of non-state pension funds, implies a certain, rather rigid model of consumer behavior,” says Alexei Zubets, a professor at the Financial University under the Government of the Russian Federation. – To have a good income in old age, you need to start saving at least from the age of 30. At the same time, we need mechanisms to protect against inflation, which the country does not have. Many people remember very well what happened to money in the early 1990s, and what cumulative inflation they ended up with today. Accordingly, a long-term savings program will attract few people. Unless for the sake of tax deductions and co-financing from the state. The mechanism of which, importantly, only works for the first three years.”

And 2 million potential participants is, firstly, only a forecast figure, and secondly, a mere trifle against the backdrop of 72 million working Russians. The idea is feasible only in one case – if the state offers the population some form of protection against inflation. According to Zubets, this could be, for example, the equivalent of rubles in gold, oil or securities, the profitability of which depends on rising prices. But so far nothing has been heard about the creation of such tools.