Ukrainians lose 14 thousand hryvnias every year: how the birth date affects the pension.

Ukrainians can lose over 14 thousand hryvnias annually due to an incorrectly chosen date for filing a pension application. Many elderly citizens are unaware that this problem has existed for 20 years.

Current legislation on pensions hides many nuances. One of them is determining the amount of the pension. Although the rules are formally the same for everyone, a few days of difference in submitting an application to the Pension Fund can lead to annual losses of thousands of hryvnias.

How much Ukrainians can lose

For example, if a pensioner reaches retirement age on October 10, 2024, and submits an application in 2024, their pension amount will be 10,847.53 UAH. However, if they contact the PFU on January 10, 2025, they will receive 12,045.67 UAH. The difference is 1,198 UAH per month, or over 14 thousand UAH per year.

For those born before October 1, the situation is different. By submitting an application in January, they will receive an increased pension amount but lose payments for several months of the current year. In some cases, this may be beneficial since the larger pension amount compensates for the missed sums.

The norm, which has been in effect since 2004, lacked a fair approach to calculating pensions upon appointment, despite over 20 years of deficiencies.