How to receive sky-high pensions without limits? A guide from prosecutors and judges.

After internal audits, it was discovered that in certain regions over a quarter of prosecutors are individuals with disabilities. At least, officially. This status provides them with certain benefits for employment or transfers to other positions, as well as the right to receive substantial pension payments.

As it was found out by EP, about 20% of prosecutors indicated in their declarations that they were receiving pension payments. However, as a detailed investigation into this topic revealed, not all of these pensions are related to disabilities.

According to the Ministry of Social Policy, there are 525 current and former prosecutors in Ukraine receiving disability pensions. Of these, 52 individuals received this status and the corresponding pension between 2022 and 2024. This means that the majority of the 6,867 retired prosecutors receive pensions based on years of service.

According to the law, a prosecutor's pension (both for years of service and in case of disability) should amount to 60% of their salary, but cannot exceed ten minimum living wages for individuals who have lost their ability to work, which is 23,610 UAH. In practice, however, prosecutors' pensions can reach tens or even hundreds of thousands of UAH per month. A nice "bonus" to their salary, which is also tax-free.

How have prosecutors managed to circumvent the law and receive exorbitant pensions, and who else is abusing the state's generosity?

Special Pensions

For the majority of Ukrainians, reaching retirement age – 60 years – and having 35 years of work experience, during which the employer paid contributions to the Pension Fund for the future retiree, is necessary to qualify for a pension. If these requirements are met, the individual is entitled to a pension amounting to 35-40% of their average salary.

These conditions apply to most, but not all Ukrainians. Over the years of independence, legislators have created classes of individuals whose pensions are regulated not by the general law "On Mandatory State Pension Insurance," but by separate, special legislative acts. Such special pensioners can receive state payments much earlier than ordinary citizens, and their payments are significantly higher than the average in the country.

The state finds it difficult to support less protected pensioners but easily pays 100 thousand to judges. What is wrong with the pension system?

For instance, the conditions for prosecutors' retirement are outlined in the law "On the Prosecutor's Office." According to this law, prosecutors are entitled to pension payments after 25 years of work experience, of which 15 years must be in positions within the prosecutor's office. The law stipulates that the amount of a prosecutor's pension should be 60% of their salary.

However, this generosity has its limits: at one time, legislators amended the prosecutor's law, capping the maximum possible pension amount for prosecutors at ten minimum living wages for individuals who have lost their ability to work. In 2024, this is 23,610 UAH per month.

Prosecutors with disabilities. How many of them in Ukraine have the status of persons with disabilities?

This restriction applies not only to prosecutors but to all citizens. However, unlike most Ukrainians, prosecutors have learned to effectively bypass it. A superficial review of their declarations showed that some of them receive pensions that far exceed the legal limit.

For example, the head of the Specialized Prosecutor's Office for supervision of criminal proceedings related to military crimes Hryhoriy Ryabenko indicated in his 2023 declaration pension payments exceeding 1 million UAH (an average of 83,500 UAH per month).

The head of the Kharkiv Prosecutor's Office Oleksandr Shevchenko declared 1.21 million UAH in pension payments (101,000 UAH), while the deputy prosecutor of Rivne region Valeriy Patrykei reported nearly 1.4 million UAH in pension (116,350 UAH). How do prosecutors manage to receive such payments?

How to Bypass the Law

Judges help prosecutors bypass the pension "ceiling." Moreover, the judiciary not only assigns pensions exceeding ten minimum living wages but also those greater than the legally established 60% of the salary.

"A significant number of prosecutors and retired law enforcement officers challenge even more favorable pension calculation conditions in court. For instance, the calculation based on 90% of the monetary provision or salary of a current employee of the respective agency," the Ministry of Social Policy informed EP.

Moreover, prosecutors demand in court to appoint them a pension even without the required 25 years of work experience, of which at least 15 must be in the prosecutor's office. To understand how they manage to fight for unlimited pensions from the state, one should review several court decisions regarding pension appointments.

(Not) People's Pensions for People's Representatives: How Deputies Fight for Special Pensions

Initially, the prosecutor appeals to the Pension Fund to have their pension assigned under a special law. Often, the Pension Fund responds to such requests with a refusal, as the prosecutor does not have the necessary years of service.

After receiving a refusal, the prosecutor turns to the court and demands that their work experience be recalculated and that their pension be calculated to exceed 60% of their salary. In their arguments, the plaintiff refers not to the current law "On the Prosecutor's Office" from 2015, but to the law from 1991, which has lost its validity. Moreover, not to its latest version, but to the one that was in effect from 2001.

The pension amount for a prosecutor was set at 80% of their salary. For each year worked in this position beyond ten years, the pension amount increased by 2% of the salary, but not more than 90% of the salary. Thus, having worked in the prosecutor's office for 15 years or more, a person could claim a pension of 90% of their salary under the old law.

An important point: this version of the invalid law did not set any limits on the maximum allowable pension amount.

The number of pensioners may increase by a million. The Constitutional Court is considering the legality of the 2017 reform

The plaintiffs justify their demands by stating that at the beginning of their work activity (specifically, during their studies in law faculties at higher educational institutions), different legislation was in effect, thus creating "legitimate expectations" for pensions of 80-90% of their salary. Moreover, the Constitution prohibits narrowing citizens' rights, and the deterioration of retirement conditions for prosecutors constitutes such a narrowing.

Generally, courts agree with these arguments. Sometimes they simply overturn the Pension Fund's decisions on pension assignments and oblige the fund to recalculate it. However, more often than not, judges themselves dictate what the amount of the prosecutor's pension should be. This was the case in four cases: 1, 2, 3 and 4.

Sometimes, prosecutors do not stop at receiving an additional 90% of their salary and appeal to the court each time their salary increases, demanding that the Pension Fund accordingly raise the amount of their payments.

Not only Prosecutors

In Ukraine, there are 6,867 retired prosecutors. A significant portion of them receive pensions and continue to work in their positions. EP has established that every fifth prosecutor in their 2023 declaration indicated that they were receiving