This category of citizens, like no other, needs social protection and assistance from the state. First of all, this state of affairs is due to the fact that too small amounts of monthly pension payments force older people to live literally below the poverty line. The state issued relevant laws, thanks to which special material assistance appeared. Pensioners today can contact the social authorities for the protection of the population and receive the support due to them.
What types of assistance does the state provide?
There are many different variations on how the government compensates older people for the hardships of life in the country. As a rule, the most common options are monthly cash payments or utility bills. In addition, it is possible to provide a one-time financial support, which is, in essence, focused. This means that you get some thing necessary for the life of a pensioner, for example, appliances, furniture or clothing. Also, funds are issued to improve living conditions or obtain interest-free mortgages.
It is worth highlighting that in some situations, material assistance to pensioners from social protection is provided in the so-called in-kind form, that is, a person is provided with certain food products, clothes and shoes or essential medicines. The program works both at the federal and regional levels, that is, depending on the locality, the types of social support may vary.
Assistance to certain groups of pensioners
Under certain conditions, the state gives special privileges to former military men of advanced age. They receive preferential medical care, as well as timely treatment as part of health resort and sanatorium programs. Material assistance to pensioners of the Ministry of Internal Affairs consists in paying a lump sum of monetary allowance, the amount of which depends on the length of service in this state structure, as well as the presence of any awards or honorary titles.
Payments to older people without a steady official income are not clearly regulated and are set separately in each region. Such assistance began to operate on January 1 of last year. For working pensioners, there are also standardized payments, the amount of which largely depends on the cost of living in a particular region.
Compensation from social protection in Moscow
The authorities of the region decided that support would be provided only to those elderly people who were already 70 years old or more. Moreover, their monthly income should not exceed the size of two subsistence minimums if they continue to officially work at any enterprise. In this situation, they will be given 700 rubles a month.
Material assistance from social protection to pensioners in Moscow also includes the provision of a TV and a refrigerator. In addition, they are entitled to certain monetary allowances and compensation. To do this, a pensioner must belong to one of the social groups, including poor and large families, war veterans, labor veterans, war children, disabled people or war veterans.
Assistance calculation example for Moscow and the region
In September 2017, a living wage was increased in this village. For elderly residents from the Moscow Region, its level increased to 8.4 thousand rubles, which is 900 rubles more than the previous amount. For married couples-pensioners, the total income with this innovation should not exceed 16.8 thousand rubles, otherwise they will be denied material assistance. If one of the spouses crossed the threshold of 70 years of age, and one of them continues to work on official work, their total budget should be within 33.6 thousand rubles per month.
Material assistance to pensioners from Moscow is also issued in the form of property benefits, that is, it allows saving on this regular item of expenses. For this category of citizens, the payment of this tax is completely eliminated. Pensioners also receive some benefits when traveling in city public transport.
Rules for getting help
First, you should contact one of the two authorized authorities: the Ministry of Social Policy or the Committee on Social Protection of the Population. In the latter case, you will first have to consult to find out if the pensioner is entitled to any subsidies or benefits in this specific region of residence.
It is necessary to take the application form and fill it out. It is important to indicate the most convenient way to obtain financing. Of the current ways of how to receive financial assistance to a pensioner, one can mention transfers to the personal account or cash desk of a territorial unit, as well as to the nearest post office.
Preparation of documents
The list of required securities is not so large, but must be collected immediately before the application is submitted. In the list you can list the passport of a citizen of the Russian Federation, data for confirming registration, a pension certificate, a work book and a certificate of current income. For all this, it is enough to make copies; there is no need to submit originals. In the original, you need to give only the application for financial assistance to the pensioner.
The entire collected package of documents is either personally entered into the social protection center or the MFC at the place of residence, or sent by mail. However, now there is a more convenient way where you can file an application and send scanned papers in electronic form on the official website of the State Service. In the future, you still have to visit one of the authorized bodies in person, however, this option is convenient because the initial submission for consideration does not take much time.
Pending approval
Exactly one calendar month is given for the decision of the commission. This period begins to be counted only from the moment when the application is officially registered in the system. It is worth noting that this date usually coincides with the time of submission of all required securities to the authorized body. If there are no difficulties in the process, then the request can be approved already on the tenth day.
Specialists at the same time carefully check the compliance of all facts with the received papers. If any important documents are not enough, then the provision of financial assistance to a pensioner may simply be refused. After that, you will have to look for the missing information and re-compile the application. Also, in some cases, additional verification is required. Representatives of the Pension Fund will contact the pensioner and tentatively agree on the day of the visit to his home.
Senior Citizen Package
A comprehensive social package is available for some citizens, which includes three main privileges:
- Allocation of funds or compensation of the pensioner's expenses for travel to any health resort, as well as back home. Both land and water or air transport are available for payment.
- The acquisition of all necessary medicines that an elderly person needs and which he cannot pay.
- The annual opportunity to visit the sanitary-resort area for free for the general improvement of the body or for complex rehabilitation measures.
Comprehensive financial assistance to pensioners in this form is issued to all veterans and participants of the Second World War, military personnel with state decorations, residents of besieged Leningrad, family members of the dead invalids and veterans of the Second World War and ordinary invalids.
Addressing one-time support
Such a program works only for those elderly people who live together with relatives who are not officially employed, and the total income in the family does not exceed fifteen thousand rubles. Also, the effect of this financial assistance to non-working pensioners extends to those who live alone.
It is worth noting that the program is targeted and is not more than once a year. Thus, the state can pay for the expensive treatment prescribed after the doctor’s examination, the repair of the living room in case of any emergency, or the heating needs of a person. Preliminarily, specialists will visit an elderly person and establish the probable amount of social financing, which the authorized body can provide. After drawing up the inspection report and the survey of the pensioner, a payment deadline will be assigned.
Other ways to help
All monetary compensation can be divided into three main groups. In this vein, material assistance to pensioners is in the form of social benefits, monthly payments and subsidies. The first are at the expense of budget funds completely free of charge. Monthly payments may include a partial or one hundred percent discount on telephony, utilities, and other fixed expenses. Monthly payments are assigned only after submitting the application and its subsequent approval by the FIU.
In addition, there is social support at the regional or federal level, consisting in a permanent pension allowance. Local authorities equalize the received monetary allowance with the Russian cost of living, if payments were previously less than it. A certain amount is also allocated from the federal budget. Its size is equal to the average subsistence minimum established for the year throughout the country.
The legislative framework
Some seek to independently study information on all payments due to them. The regulation of the provision of material assistance to pensioners from the state is described in a number of federal laws. Among them are Federal Laws No. 173, 195, 5, 181, and 400. In addition, local authorities can have their own legal acts that are observed in the territory of local settlements.
Thanks to such regional corrections, some pensioners in certain areas may receive increased payments or other additional compensations and allowances. In any case, it is required to contact the authorized bodies at the place of their own registration, otherwise the issue of the pensioner will not be considered.