How to Confirm Pensionable Service If Your Employment Record Book Was Lost Due to War
Since 2014, certain territories of Ukraine have been occupied by the Russian Federation. The situation escalated in February 2022 with the outbreak of large-scale hostilities. As a result, many Ukrainian citizens were forced to leave their cities and jobs and relocate to territories controlled by Ukraine. Such relocation was often accompanied by serious consequences, including the loss of original personal documents, such as employment record books. The employment record book of each employee was traditionally kept by the employer, namely by the personnel department of the enterprise. During the occupation, some enterprises ceased operations and did not return employment record books to their employees. What should you do in such a situation?
The employment record book is one of the primary documents confirming a person’s employment history. When applying for a pension, a person may need to provide an employment record book so that the Pension Fund can determine the length of their pensionable service. However, for pension purposes, periods of employment should be divided into those acquired before 2004 and those acquired from 2004 onwards.
As a general rule, employment periods before 2004 are confirmed by entries in the employment record book. If the employment record book is unavailable, employment periods may be confirmed by information contained in the Register of Insured Persons of the State Register of Compulsory State Social Insurance, certificates issued by employers confirming employment, extracts from employment orders, personal accounts and payroll records, written employment contracts and agreements containing confirmation of their performance, as well as other documents containing information about periods of employment. Documents confirming employment history may also be obtained from archival institutions.
Periods of employment from 2004 onwards may also be confirmed by information contained in the employment record book. However, even if the employment record book is unavailable, this does not necessarily mean that the Pension Fund of Ukraine will refuse to include the relevant periods in the insurance record. Since 1 January 2004, such periods are primarily confirmed by information from the Register of Insured Persons concerning the payment of insurance contributions. For a period of employment to be included in the insurance record, the employer must pay the required insurance contribution for the employee. The relevant information is then reflected in the register.
Ukraine also has an “electronic employment record book”. Since 10 June 2021, it has been possible to submit information about a person’s employment history electronically. This can be done either by the employee or by the employer. The electronic employment record book is created through the web portal of the Pension Fund of Ukraine. Colour scans of the employee’s documents are uploaded through the personal account, after which the Pension Fund processes the information and adds the relevant employment data to the electronic system.
Therefore, if an employee has retained colour scanned copies of their employment record book, they may log in to their personal account on the Pension Fund of Ukraine web portal and upload the documents to the system. When the person subsequently applies for a pension, the Pension Fund of Ukraine will be able to use the information available in its electronic database.
Thus, losing an employment record book does not mean that you have lost your right to a future pension. In such circumstances, you should collect as many other documents confirming your employment history as possible or seek professional legal assistance.
