- JAMnews
- Yerevan
Right of NK citizens to receive a pension
The Armenian government approved “the procedure for determining and issuing pensions to those from Nagorno-Karabakh”. This refers to people of retirement age who moved to Armenia after the hostilities in September this year.
Since December 12, 2022, Azerbaijan has blocked the Lachin corridor, the only road linking Nagorno-Karabakh to Armenia. On September 19, 2023, the Azerbaijani armed forces launched a military operation, which ended the next day. The authorities of the unrecognized NKR announced that the republic had ceased to exist. Almost all Armenians left NK territory within a week at the end of September, as soon as Azerbaijan unblocked the Lachin corridor and it became possible to leave.
The Armenian government has recognized the Armenians arriving in the country as “persons taken under temporary protection, i.e. refugees“. Now the members of the Cabinet of Ministers have approved a project under which all of them will be able to receive the pension they are entitled to. To do so, they will simply need to fill out an online application. If there is information about them in the pension database of the NFP the right to a pension will not be reviewed, the working experience will be preserved. A mandatory condition for receiving a pension in Armenia will be registration at the place of residence in Armenia.
According to these regulations, pensions will be assigned until the end of 2028, in accordance with the Armenian legislation. And then, if necessary, both the length of service and the right to receive a pension will be reconsidered.
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“A person taken under temporary protection and recognized as a refugee, whose pension file is saved in the NK Pension Database, can submit an online application for receiving a pension to the relevant authorities of the Republic of Armenia until June 1, 2024,” Deputy Minister of Labor and Social Affairs David Khachatryan said.
Those who submit online-application will choose their preferred bank for receiving payment.
The Deputy Minister assured that no other documents will have to be attached to the application. He also said that the refugees’ right to pension would not be reconsidered, with duration of work within NK counting toward the amount.
However, according to the decision of the Armenian Government, the amount would be calculated according to local legislation.
Those who have reached the age of 63 but have not yet received a pension can also apply for a pension, subject to the same regulations. Pensions will be assigned no earlier than October 1.
“For example, if a person turned 63 on September 15, 2023, and applied on December 11, 2023, they will be assigned the status of pensioner from October 1, 2023,” the government draft says.
Due to the decision to pay pensions to an additional number of people, Armenia’s budget expenditures for October-December 2023 will increase by 2.3 billion drams ($5,750,000).
According to the draft approved by the Armenian Government, it is authorized to “determine the procedure for applying for pensions for persons with refugee status, assign pensions to them, and carry out recalculation”.
However, it says that the same procedures are proposed to be extended to those included in the NK pension base who have already submitted a relevant application and obtained citizenship of the Republic of Armenia.