WHO IS ENTITLED TO A CIVIL SERVANT PENSION?

The profile law of Ukraine, which defines the basic principles, legal and organizational principles of ensuring public, professional, politically impartial, effective, citizen-oriented public service, as well as the procedure for exercising the right of equal access to public service by citizens of Ukraine, is the Law of Ukraine "On Public Service" № 889-VIII dated 10.12.2015, which entered into force on 01.05.2016 (hereinafter - Law № 889).

LEGAL REGULATION OF PENSION SECURITY OF STATE CIVIL SERVANTS:

As a general rule, in accordance with Part 1 of Article 90 of Law № 889, pension provision of civil servants is carried out in accordance with the Law of Ukraine "On Mandatory State Pension Insurance".

However, the final provisions of Law № 889 preserve the right to grant a pension in accordance with Article 37 of the Law of Ukraine "On Civil Service" (hereinafter - the 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 experience in positions assigned to the relevant categories of civil servant 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 experience in positions assigned to the relevant categories of civil service positions, defined by Article 25 of the Law of Ukraine 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 civil service record as of 01.05.2016 (10 years for persons who held civil service positions on the specified date, or 20 years of civil service record regardless of whether a person worked as a civil servant as of May 1, 2016), such a person retains the right to a pension in accordance with Article 37 of Law № 3723-XII.

WHAT ARE THE ACTIONS OF THE PENSION FUND OF UKRAINE IN PRACTICE?

Analyzing the practice of numerous requests from our Clients regarding this issue, it should be noted that even with the above-mentioned grounds, the Pension Fund of Ukraine still refuses to transfer/appoint this type of pension.
Unfortunately, it can only be resolved in court.

ANALYSIS OF "FRESH" COURT PRACTICE

Most of the decisions of the Pension Fund of Ukraine to refuse reassignment are motivated by the fact that, according to the employment book, there is no required experience in the positions assigned to the relevant categories of civil servant positions defined by Article 25 of the Law № 3723 and acts of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine.

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

The disputed between the parties in this legal relationship is:

• the issue of enrollment in seniority in civil service positions of various periods of work, whether it is military service, whether it is work in local self-government bodies, and others.

Numerous court practices indicate the main thesis that "the body of the pension fund, as a subject of authority, interprets the norms of the Law at its discretion, and prefers the least favorable interpretation of the legislation of Ukraine for the pensioner."

Therefore, if you meet the above-mentioned requirements for the appointment of a pension in accordance with Law № 3723-ХІI, you should choose such a right in court and not stop at the refusal of the PFU, we advise you to contact the lawyers of Prikhodko&Partners AB, who know how to do it in practice.