Changes Proposed to the Mandatory Pension Fund Law

During a session of the National Assembly's Permanent Committee on Labor and Social Affairs, a draft amendment to the Mandatory Pension Fund Law was discussed. According to Deputy Minister of Health Artak Jumayanyan, under the current law, in cases of illness included in the list established by the Armenian government, individuals have the right to fully withdraw their pension savings based on a conclusion provided by the Ministry of Health.

“Currently, the Ministry of Health is responsible for calculating the requests for full withdrawal of pension savings, reviewing applications submitted by beneficiaries. According to existing legislation, a professional committee is established for each case to determine the compliance or non-compliance with the list of included diseases and the citizen's diagnosis, and a conclusion is provided in accordance with established procedures. This process leads to additional paperwork and is a function that is not typical for the Ministry as a policy-making body,” explained Jumayanyan.

The decision came into force in 2015. Over these years, there has been a significant increase in citizen applications. According to the main reporter, if the total number of citizen applications in 2017-2018 was 2, by 2023, 43 citizens had applied.

The proposed amendment aims to assign this function to the Unified Social Service of the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs. The evaluation of an individual's functionality, the determination of the degree of loss of professional working capacity related to occupational diseases, including the provision of a professional conclusion, will also be carried out by the Unified Social Service.

The draft has received a positive conclusion.