WHO IS ENTITLED TO A CIVIL SERVANT PENSION?

The relevant law of Ukraine, which defines the fundamental principles, legal and organizational framework for ensuring a public, professional, politically impartial, effective, citizen-oriented civil service, as well as the procedure for the exercise by Ukrainian citizens of the right to equal access to civil service, is the Law of Ukraine "On civil service" № 889-VIII of December 10, 2015, which entered into force on May 1, 2016 (hereinafter, Law № 889). Therefore, in this article, a pension dispute lawyer from "Prikhodko&Partners" will provide an explanation regarding civil servant pensions.

Legal regulation of pension provision for civil servants

As a general rule, in accordance with Part 1 of Article 90 of Law № 889, pension provision for civil servants is carried out in accordance with the Law of Ukraine "On compulsory state pension insurance".

However, the final provisions of Law № 889 retain the right to appoint a pension in accordance with Article 37 of the Law of Ukraine "On civil service" (hereinafter - Law № 3723-XII):

• civil servants who, on the date of entry into force of this Law (01.05.2016), hold civil service positions and have at least 10 years of service in positions classified within the relevant categories of civil service positions defined by Article 25 of Law 3723 and acts of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine;
• persons who, on the date of entry into force of this Law (01.05.2016), have at least 20 years of service in positions classified within the relevant categories of civil service positions defined by Article 25 of Law 3723 and acts of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine.

That is, in the final and transitional provisions of Law № 889, the legislator provided for certain REQUIREMENTS - if a person has a certain length of service in the civil service as of 01.05.2016 (10 years for persons who held civil service positions on the specified date, or 20 years of civil service experience regardless of whether the person worked in the civil service as of 01.05.2016), such person retains the right to be assigned a pension in accordance with Article 37 of Law № 3723-XII.

What are the practical actions of the Pension fund of Ukraine?

Analyzing numerous requests from our clients on this issue, it should be noted that, even with the above-mentioned grounds, the Pension fund of Ukraine still refuses to transfer or assign this type of pension. Unfortunately, this can only be resolved through legal action.

Analysis of "fresh" judicial practice

Most of the decisions of the Pension fund of Ukraine to refuse recalculation are motivated by the fact that, according to the work record book, there is no required length of service in positions classified as the relevant categories of civil servant positions, as defined by Article 25 of Law № 3723 and acts of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine.

However, the Pension fund authorities do not take into account that paragraph 8 of the Final and transitional provisions of Law № 889-VIII stipulates that the length of service in the civil service for periods of work (service) prior to the entry into force of this Law is calculated in the manner and under the conditions established by law at that time.

An example of calculating a civil servant's pension

Explanation: the amount of a civil servant's pension (for persons who received the right under the old legislation) is 60% of the total salary, including all payments from which the unified social tax was paid.

Is the pension of a civil servant indexed?

The issue of indexing civil servant pensions is one of the most challenging in the application of pension legislation. Unlike regular pensions, which are determined in accordance with the Law of Ukraine "On compulsory state pension insurance", civil servant pensions are regulated by special legislation, specifically the Law of Ukraine "On civil service".

It's important to understand that the classic indexation stipulated by Article 42 of Law № 1058-IV does not apply directly to civil servant pensions. However, the mechanism for increasing such pensions has historically been tied to wage increases for active civil servants.

Following the 2016 reforms, the situation changed significantly. Newly established pensions for civil servants were effectively no longer linked to automatic recalculations due to salary increases. This led to a situation where a significant number of retired civil servants received no increases for an extended period.

Thus, formally, indexation of pensions for civil servants in the classical form is not provided for.

The following is controversial between the parties in these legal relations:

• the issue of including different periods of work or military service, or work in local government bodies, into seniority in civil service positions, and others.

Numerous court cases have highlighted the main thesis that “the pension fund body, as a subject of authority, interprets the provisions of the Law at its own discretion and prefers the least favorable interpretation of Ukrainian legislation for the pensioner”.

So, if you meet the above requirements for the appointment of a pension in accordance with Law №  3723-XII, you should fight for this right in court and not settle for a refusal from the Pension fund. We recommend contacting the lawyers of "Prikhodko&Partners", who know how to do this from experience.