How to Retire 1.5 Years Before Retirement Age in Ukraine

Many people eventually begin considering when and under what conditions they can retire. Under the general rules of Ukrainian pension legislation, entitlement to an old-age pension depends on reaching the statutory retirement age and having the required insurance record. At the same time, Ukrainian legislation provides preferential and early retirement rules for certain categories of people, allowing them to retire before the general retirement age if the applicable statutory conditions are met.

However, is it possible to retire before reaching the general retirement age without having preferential service under List No. 1 or List No. 2? In certain circumstances, Ukrainian legislation has provided such a possibility for employees whose employment was terminated shortly before retirement age for reasons beyond their control.

Who may qualify for retirement 1 year and 6 months before the statutory retirement age?

The relevant rules concerned employees whose employment was terminated at the employer’s initiative no more than 1 year and 6 months before reaching the statutory retirement age due to liquidation, reorganisation or restructuring of an enterprise, institution or organisation, staff reductions, or where an employee was found unable to continue performing their work for health reasons. The person must also have the insurance record required by law for entitlement to an old-age pension.

In practice, however, the Pension Fund of Ukraine may refuse to grant an early pension in such circumstances, referring to the absence of an express provision or an effective statutory mechanism governing the procedure. The issue arose after the relevant early-retirement provisions had been removed from the legislation and the Constitutional Court of Ukraine subsequently found the legislative changes restricting this right to be unconstitutional.

The absence of subsequent legislative amendments establishing a detailed mechanism for implementing the Constitutional Court’s decision should not, in itself, deprive a person of a pension right recognised and protected by law. A legislative or procedural gap cannot automatically justify refusing to exercise a right that follows from the Constitutional Court’s legal position.

Where the Pension Fund refuses to grant an early pension on these grounds, its decision may be challenged before an administrative court. Ukrainian court practice provides important arguments in favour of applicants in such disputes. Courts have emphasised that the absence of a detailed administrative mechanism for granting the pension should not prevent a person from exercising a pension right guaranteed by law and supported by the relevant decision of the Constitutional Court of Ukraine.