Transition to Russian retirement age to be accelerated in new regions

The transition to the Russian retirement age in new regions, contrary to the initial plans of the government, will occur not in 10, but in less than 5 years, Vedomosti drew attention. This follows from the final text of the law “On Peculiarities of Pension and Additional Social Security for Citizens of the Russian Federation Living in the Territories of the DPR, LPR, Zaporozhye Region, Kherson Region”, adopted by the State Duma immediately in the second and third readings on February 14.

According to Ukrainian legislation, which was in force in the Kherson and Zaporozhye regions, the retirement age is 60 years for men and women upon reaching 30 years of work experience, 63 years with an experience of 20 to 30 years, 65 years with an experience of 15–20 years. In the DPR and LPR, the retirement age is set at 60 for men and 55 for women. In Russia, the law on pension reform was adopted in 2018, and it started in 2018: it involves a phased increase in the retirement age by five years. By 2028, the retirement age will reach 65 for men and 60 for women.

The White House bill was introduced to the lower house of parliament on January 27. As Vedomosti wrote, the original version of the document assumed the preservation of the old retirement age for those who already receive it. At the same time, for citizens who should retire from March 1, 2023 to December 31, 2032, in accordance with the legislation in force in the new territories, it was promised to establish a transition period. Experts called the delayed increase in the retirement age in the new regions logical.

In Russia, in 2018, a 10-year transitional period was established to raise the retirement age – it lasts from 2019 to 2028, recalled Alexander Safonov, Vice-Rector of the Financial University. “We have already passed four years from this period, but the new regions have not, therefore it is fair to set the same 10-year period for them until 2032,” the expert noted. “It is necessary that people who are moving into the legal field of the Russian Federation have the opportunity of a gradual transition,” said Svetlana Bessarab, a member of the State Duma Committee on Labor, Social Policy and Veterans Affairs. According to her, for those regions “which are in a rather difficult situation today, of course, a transitional period is needed.”

True, immediately after the first reading, which took place on February 13, the deputies introduced amendments to the bill. One of them adjusted the parameters of the transition period. Now the transition period until 2032 does not appear there. The right to payments, according to the text of the law, occurs for citizens “who, in the period from January 1, 2023 to December 31, 2027, will reach the age that gives the right to receive an old-age pension (by age) in accordance with the legislation in force in the territories DPR, LPR, Zaporizhia region and Kherson region.