East SOS joined the drafting of proposals for the Verkhovna Rada Committee regarding pension payments to internally displaced persons (IDPs)

Since January 2026, hundreds of thousands of pensioners have been left without payments as a result of the implementation of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine Resolution No. 299 and the identification procedures applied by the Pension Fund of Ukraine.

A coalition of organizations working to protect the rights of people affected by the armed aggression against Ukraine has prepared recommendations for the hearings of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Social Policy and Protection of Veterans’ Rights on the topic: “On the state of organization and verification of payments and identification of persons receiving pensions and/or social benefits.” Human rights defenders have repeatedly highlighted the practical consequences of implementing the above-mentioned Resolution and the provisions of the Law of Ukraine “On Compulsory State Pension Insurance.”

Representatives of the Coalition of Human Rights Organizations note that the Pension Fund of Ukraine refers to Cabinet of Ministers Resolution No. 299, which required pensioners to confirm by December 31, 2025 that they do not receive pension payments from the russian authorities. At the same time, based on numerous appeals from citizens, systemic problems have been identified, including:

• Pensioners were not properly or timely informed about the deadlines, requirements, and consequences of failing to comply with the established procedures.
  
• There is no accessible mechanism for submitting applications for older persons and persons with disabilities who are physically unable to apply to the Pension Fund in person.
  
• Payments were suspended even for individuals who had already completed identification and submitted the required applications.
  
• “Additional checks” were reportedly carried out, resulting in the suspension of payments to all pensioners from temporarily occupied territories (TOT).
  
• Due to technical failures of the Pension Fund’s online portal, individuals did not receive confirmation of the date of video identification or were not contacted at the scheduled time, after which their payments were suspended.
  
• Pensioners residing abroad who had completed identification were not informed of the additional requirement to separately confirm that they do not receive pensions from the russian federation.
  
• There was no proper individualized notification regarding the termination of payments, the grounds for such decisions, or the procedure for reinstatement.

As a result, amid the ongoing war, constant shelling of Ukrainian cities and villages by russia, power outages, and severe weather conditions, hundreds of thousands of people have been left without any source of livelihood.

Civil society organizations call for:

• The immediate and automatic resumption of payments to all individuals whose pensions were suspended in January 2026 due to failure to complete identification and/or failure to provide confirmation of non-receipt of a pension from the russian federation.
  
• A revision of regulatory approaches, taking into account the conditions of temporary occupation and preventing discrimination against residents of temporarily occupied territories (TOT).
  
• The establishment of a working group under the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Committee to analyze problems in the application of legislation and to prepare amendments in the field of pension law and protection of the rights of internally displaced persons (IDPs).
  
• The introduction of systematic communication mechanisms, including updated contact information, SMS notifications about mandatory actions and deadlines, and clear information about possible legal consequences of non-compliance.
  
• The provision of documentary confirmation of completed identification procedures, indicating the date, method, and validity period.
  
• Amendments to Resolution No. 299 to enshrine the proposed mechanisms in law.

The full text of the proposals prepared by the Coalition of Human Rights Organizations is available in the document below.

The document was signed by:

• East SOS Charity Foundation
  
• Civil Holding “Group of Influence”
  
• ZMINA Human Rights Center
  
• CrimeaSOS NGO
  
• Right to Protection Charitable Foundation
  
• Stabilization Support Services Charity Foundation
  
• Donbas SOS NGO
  
• Crimean Human Rights Group
  
• Crisis Insight

Recently, East SOS joined the development of a collective position on the protection of humanitarian workers operating on the frontline.