Chairman of the Social Fund of Russia Sergey Chirkov, in an interview with the RIA Novosti, spoke about the main achievements of the Fund over its first year of operation since its establishment, the support provided to families with children, the work of branches in the new regions, and shared details about the preparation of a unified registry of Russians in need and the agency's development plans. Interview by Anastasia Kyosya.
– By order of the Russian government, you have been appointed Chairman of the Unified Pension and Social Insurance Fund as of January 1, 2023. What has the Fund achieved in its first year of operation?
– The Social Fund was created to make the provision of services and support more convenient and of higher quality. We did everything to ensure that people continued receiving their scheduled payments on the same dates and at familiar locations. We launched new support measures, optimized the formats of existing services, adopted new functions, and accelerated decision-making on payments and social services.
When the Social Fund was established, a unified insurance rate was introduced, simplifying the payment of contributions and reducing the administrative burden on companies. Now, all citizens working under civil law contracts can receive sick leave payments, maternity benefits, and childcare allowances up to 1.5 years of age, which was not available before. This measure may affect around four million citizens.
Another project launched due to the creation of the Fund is the communication centers for senior citizens. We opened them across the country in spaces vacated after the merger of the Pension Fund and the Social Insurance Fund. In these centers, our seniors spend their leisure time in diverse and meaningful ways. Through this project, we aim to promote active aging, a healthy lifestyle, volunteerism, and, of course, improve pension literacy by teaching seniors computer and financial skills.
There are 250 communication centers operating nationwide, most of them are located in small districts, and another 37 are set to open by the end of 2023. The centers are extremely popular: we receive a large number of positive reviews. Since the project's launch, over 17,000 events have been held, with more than 180,000 senior citizens participating.
The most important achievement of this year is the assignment of the unified benefit, which was introduced alongside the Social Fund. Currently, parents of 10.7 million children and 390,000 pregnant women are receiving this benefit. It consolidated previously existing support measures for families with children and was transformed into a modern payment now provided in a simpler and more convenient format. The first major change with its introduction was continuous support for families, from pregnancy through the school graduation. No child benefit in Russia previously covered such an extended period.
Since the beginning of 2023, the Fund has provided citizens with over 140 million various services. Everyone can choose how to receive services: electronically or by visiting a client service office in person. 2,600 client offices of the Fund are operating across the country. Every day, more than 1,000 operators respond to citizens' inquiries received by our social issues call center. Our specialists process around 300,000 inquiries per day. This year, we significantly reduced the average wait time for operator responses. It now averages less than one minute.
– How many people in Russia have not yet switched to the unified benefit and continue receiving previous payments? Is there a plan to transfer them to the unified benefit?
– Of course, we continue to provide all previously assigned payments; these obligations remain in place. But there is a natural process underway, where people are transitioning to the new unified benefit instead of receiving the old one. Let's take the monthly payment for school-age children, from 8 to 17 years old. Last year, it was provided as a separate benefit. Now, it has become part of the unified benefit. In December of last year, parents of more than 5 million children received the school benefit. Currently, funds are being provided to about 100,000 children. Where have these families gone? Have they stopped receiving payments? Or perhaps the children have grown up? No. The families have simply transitioned to the unified benefit. Going forward, the processing of child benefits will follow the same path.
– Are any changes expected in the maternity capital program?
– For more than 15 years, the Fund has been issuing maternity capital certificates to families. In 2023, around 850,000 certificates were issued, and over 1.9 million applications were submitted for the use of maternity capital funds. The most popular use remains the purchase of mortgage housing. To make life easier for parents, we reached an agreement with banks so that when applying for a loan, they immediately accept documents related to the use of maternity capital.
Next year, on February 1, the amount of maternity capital will be indexed by 7.5%. For citizens who have already partially used their maternity capital, only the remaining balance will be indexed. Additionally, starting from the new year, the conditions for assigning monthly payments from maternity capital will be adjusted. The period during which parents can apply for the payment and receive funds for the entire time since the child's birth will be extended. Currently, this is possible within the first three months after birth, but starting in 2024, parents will have six months to apply.
– What challenges has the Social Fund faced in establishing operations in Russia's new regions? Are there any current difficulties in assigning pensions and benefits?
– One of the main tasks we are addressing this year in the new regions is helping a large number of people who, have been integrated into the Russian social system since March and are now applying for payments under new laws or receiving support measures for the first time. That's why the work here is intensive. Our specialists from various regions go on assignment to the Donetsk and Lugansk People's Republics, as well as the Kherson and Zaporozhye regions to assist their colleagues.
Current indicators for assigning payments look optimistic. For example, in early December, we reached a milestone of one million pensions assigned in the new regions. To understand the scale, it's enough to say that approximately the same number of pensions were assigned annually across Russia in recent years. But it's important to understand that pensions in the new regions have only been assigned for eight months, and each pension processed in these constituent entities requires twice the effort compared to standard and well-established procedures. That's why we say the pace of assigning payments in the new regions is going well.
Despite all the challenges, the Fund has managed to implement convenient service formats. For example, monthly cash payments for people with disabilities in the new regions are assigned proactively in half of all cases. Our specialists also proactively assign SNILS (individual insurance account number) based on data from the Ministry of Internal Affairs regarding issued Russian passports. In total, more than 2 million different payments and support measures have already been approved for residents of the new constituent entities.
– A unified registry of Russian citizens in need is planned to be launched on January 1, 2024. What stage is the registry at now? Will you be able to complete the work by the scheduled date?
– As planned, the registry will be available for use starting from the new year. Its data will help identify those in need of state support, allowing assistance to be provided more precisely to those who truly need it. The system will make it possible to identify citizens who previously did not receive support measures, including categories such as large families, labor veterans and combat veterans, orphans, students, and others.
The creation of the registry is proceeding according to schedule. At this point, almost everything is ready for launch and use. Within the interdepartmental interaction system (SMEV), a service has been launched to provide information about family composition and relatives. A service has also been created to provide data on Russian citizens' income in the format required for maintaining the registry.
The registry of those in need is part of a unified digital platform, a broader system that we are also beginning to launch gradually starting in January.
– How do you see the coming year for the Social Fund? What areas do you plan to develop in the new year?
– The coming year is the Year of the Family. In the new year, the social sphere will face many challenges requiring our attention. In the new year, as always, we will continue to assist and care for citizens 24/7 through a "one contact" format via any communication channel: client service offices, multifunctional centers (MFCs), and the State Services portal. Specialists at the Fund's unified client service offices are always ready to help and answer all questions related to support measures provided by the Social Fund.
Today, the fastest and most convenient format for receiving our services is the non-application format. This means that a person does not need to contact the Fund at all. Already, more than 5 million citizens receive Fund services annually without submitting applications. This year, over 2.5 million citizens were informed about their projected future pension amount. More than 5 million citizens in various life situations received notifications via the State Services portal about the support measures they are entitled to.
The development of no-application procedures continues. In 2023, the no-application approach was implemented for the appointment of monthly cash payments to combat veterans – participants in the special military operation, Heroes of Labor of the Russian Federation, and Heroes of the Russian Federation. In 2024, we plan to implement no-application assignment of survivorship pensions for minor children and recalculation of the fixed payment amount for old-age (or disability) insurance pensions for work in the North.