The new decree On Indexation of Labor Pensions signed by President Ilham Aliyev is the continuation of the steps taken consistently in the direction of strengthening the social protection of pensioners and increasing pensions, Azernews reports, citing the Labor and Social Protection of the Population Ministry.
It was noted that all pensions set by the Order until January 1, 2024, in accordance with the information provided by the State Statistics Committee, will be indexed by 11.2 percent following the annual growth rate of the average monthly nominal salary for 2023 from January 1 of this year. Also, it is guaranteed to increase the specified amounts of pensions with supplements due to length of service and the financial assistance included in pensions from January 1, 2023, by indexing them as much as mentioned, from the beginning of this year. Increases are carried out automatically through the electronic system, and pensioners do not need to submit any documents or apply for them.
January pension increases will be paid together with February pension. For example, if a person’s pension is 500 manats, this amount will be increased by 11.2 percent, that is, 56 manats, to 556 manats from January 1 of the current year, and the increase of 56 manats in January will be added to the February pension. In total, approximately 630 million manats will be spent annually for increases covering 1.1 million pensioners. It was noted that the increase in pensions by indexing has been applied to all types of pensions since the beginning of last year.
The current increase also includes pensioners who are pensioned on a general basis, as well as pensioners who receive additional benefits due to length of service (retired military personnel, law enforcement officers, etc.). The indexation increase imposed by the decree exceeds the average inflation rate for 2023 (8.8 percent).
At the same time, according to the Decree, the pension capital registered in the individual accounts of the insured persons until January 1, 2024, is indexed by 8.8 percent according to the annual level of the consumer price index for the last year. For example, if a person’s account has 50,000 manats of pension capital, this amount will be increased by 8.8 percent, i.e. 4,400 manats, to 54,400 manats.
“This also shows that the pension capital collected in the personal accounts of working people is regularly increased not only based on social insurance deductions from their salaries every month but also based on indexation by the state at the beginning of every year”, – the ministry said.—Azer News
