Survivor’s pension according to the Law of Ukraine “On Mandatory State Pension Insurance”

When a family is faced with the death of a breadwinner, in addition to grief, a number of completely practical questions arise. Including, it is about what disabled family members can now live and provide for themselves at the expense of, if the income of the breadwinner is no longer there. So, let's get acquainted with this issue in detail.

How does the legislation regulate such situations?

In Art. 36 of the Law of Ukraine "On Mandatory State Pension Insurance" refers to the list of persons who can claim to receive a pension in connection with the loss of a breadwinner. Mention is made of such categories of disabled persons as:

• parents of the deceased whom he supported;
• wife (or husband) unable to work, who lost her means of livelihood due to the death of the breadwinner;
• minor children who were born before the expiration of 10 months from the death of the breadwinner.

It is worth making some clarifications for each of these categories. In particular, we are talking about a husband, wife, father and/or mother when they have already reached the retirement or 65-year-old age or are persons with disabilities. With regard to children, it is important to note that adult children can also belong to the mentioned category, if they are persons with disabilities. It also applies to those who study full-time in vocational and technical and general educational institutions, as well as in institutions of higher education. For orphans who have lost a breadwinner, this norm applies until the age of 23, regardless of whether they continue their education.

How is the amount of pension determined and its change?

When it comes to determining or changing the amount of a pension, the important thing here is Cabinet Resolution № 265 of March 26, 2008. It is entitled "Some issues of pension provision for citizens" and provides for such a minimum amount of pension payment that belongs to a person in connection with a loss breadwinner:

• 100% of the subsistence minimum - for one disabled family member;
• 120% – for 2 family members;
• 150% – for 3 or more family members.

This is exactly how this issue is regulated.

Why legal aid can be relevant?

At first glance, the regulation of the survivor's pension is quite clear, but the legislation contains many nuances, so the help of expert practitioners may be appropriate in such cases as:

• Allocating a portion of the pension when it is assigned to several family members. This issue is regulated by Article 39 of the aforementioned Law, and we advise clients on it in detail. Cabinet Resolution № 377 dated April 1, 2022 is also relevant here, as it adapted the current legal norms specifically to the period of martial law.
• Preparation of a package of documents for the registration of a pension in connection with the loss of a breadwinner. This issue is regulated by the "Procedure for submission and execution of documents for assignment (recalculation) of pensions in accordance with the Law of Ukraine "On Mandatory State Pension Insurance". The procedure was approved by the relevant resolution of the PFU board dated November 25, 2005 № 22-1. The main documents are indicated in subsections 2 and 3 of clause 2.1 of this Procedure, and additional documents are mentioned in subsections 1, 3-5, 7, 9 and 10 of clause 2.3.

In order not to face a situation where you have to constantly search for something, add to a package of documents or come again, it would be advisable to use the quality help of our team. This will reduce the effort and time a person spends on dealing with bureaucratic nuances.

Law office "Prikhodko&Partners" regularly works with such requests, so we will provide competent counseling and reliable support for the pension registration procedure.