Chornobyl Pension in Ukraine: How to Appeal a Pension Fund Refusal
First of all, it should be noted that 2022 was an exceptionally difficult year for Ukraine due to the full-scale invasion of the sovereign and independent territory of Ukraine by the Russian Federation. Against the background of the enormous flow of information, it was often difficult to keep track of important changes introduced into Ukrainian legislation, including changes concerning pension rights.
Before discussing the judicial procedure for resolving disputes concerning Chornobyl pensions, it is worth recalling that from 1 January 2022 the legislation expanded the categories of persons entitled to certain Chornobyl-related pension payments. The relevant guarantees applied not only to servicemen and persons liable for military service who participated in the elimination of the consequences of the Chornobyl disaster and subsequently became persons with disabilities, but also to certain participants in the elimination of the consequences of the Chornobyl disaster who had been assigned to such work by enterprises, institutions and organisations and subsequently became persons with disabilities. The amended legislation also provided relevant survivor’s pension guarantees for widows in cases where the deceased breadwinner belonged to the respective category of participants in the elimination of the consequences of the Chornobyl disaster.
As regards increases in payments, the relevant increase amounted to UAH 840 for persons with Group I disability, UAH 672 for persons with Group II disability and UAH 518 for persons with Group III disability. The increase for children with disabilities also amounted to UAH 518.
Did the procedure for submitting documents for a pension change in 2022? The full-scale invasion did not eliminate the possibility of applying for a pension through the available electronic services. As before, an applicant had to prepare the required documents and use an available electronic identification method to access their personal account on the Pension Fund of Ukraine web portal. Depending on the available services, access could be obtained using an electronic signature, BankID or electronic identification services available through Diia. The Pension Fund web portal is a multifunctional online resource that enables applicants to communicate remotely with the Pension Fund of Ukraine, including submitting documents required for a pension application.
Persons affected by the Chornobyl disaster may encounter refusals by the Pension Fund to grant or recalculate their pensions, which can result in the need to protect their pension rights in court. Before initiating court proceedings, an applicant may also use the available administrative procedure to challenge the Pension Fund’s decision. However, if the dispute cannot be resolved out of court, judicial proceedings may be necessary.
In such circumstances, it is important to obtain a written decision from the Pension Fund refusing to grant or recalculate the pension. This decision should specify the reasons why the Pension Fund did not accept the submitted documents or did not recognise the applicant’s entitlement. The refusal can then be analysed when preparing a statement of claim to the competent administrative court. The Pension Fund may raise various objections, for example, alleged errors or corrections in the employment record book, illegible employer stamps, or discrepancies in the applicant’s first name or surname between the passport, employment record book and other documents. These are among the most common reasons for pension disputes, although the list is not exhaustive.
When applying to the administrative court, the claimant may request that the Pension Fund’s decision or actions be declared unlawful and that the pension authority be required to reconsider the pension application, include the disputed periods of employment in the applicant’s insurance or employment record where legally justified, and grant or recalculate the Chornobyl pension in accordance with Ukrainian law.
