Russia raises retiremenet age and VAT. Men will have to work till 65

Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev announced the decision to raise the retirement age for men to 65 and for women - to 63 years, RBC reports.

Photo: Source: Fotodom.ru/Kommersant

"Despite the late start on this issue (raising the retirement age), we plan to introduce a fairly long transition period that is going to start from 2019 to step by step reach the retirement age of 65 years for men in 2028 and 63 years for women in 2034. This will give us an opportunity to send additional funds to increase pensions in excess of the inflation rate," Medvedev said.

For most people who were preparing to retire in the near future, changes will be smooth, Medvedev said. "For example, men born in 1959 and women born in 1964 will be able to retire in 2020, respectively, at the age of 61 and 56. Men born in 1960 and women born in 1965 will receive the right to retire in 2022, respectively, at the age of 62 and 57. The younger generation still has plenty of time to adapt to new conditions," the prime minister said.

Thus, the Russian government has decided that men will be able to retire when they turn 65, whereas women will have to turn 63. Presently, the retirement age in Russia is 55 years for women and 60 for men.

In 2015, Russia set an absolute record of average life expectancy in the entire history of the country, including the Soviet era. The average life expectancy in Russia reached 71.4 years (for men - 65.9 years, for women - 76.7). In 2016, the average life expectancy in Russia raised by another 8.5 months and reached 72.1 years. In the first half of 2017, the average life expectancy made up 72.5 years - 67.5 years for men and 77.4 years for women.

It is also proposed to consider an earlier retirement for people with a long record of service (40 years for women and 45 for men). They will be able to retire two years earlier. In addition, it is proposed to maintain current early retirement benefits for those who work in hazardous and dangerous environments, for women with five or more children, for people with disabilities, for those affected in the Chernobyl disaster and other categories that have social benefits. For those who work in special climatic conditions of the Far North, the retirement age will be 60 years for men and 58 years for women. Nothing is going to change for the already retired individuals.

Medvedev also announced the decision to raise the value added tax in Russia to 20%. VAT benefits for socially significant goods and services will be preserved, he added. Russia's current VAT rate is 18%.