Pensions of 600,000 Citizens to Increase by 10,000 Dram, Torosyan

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan held a working discussion with Minister of Labor and Social Affairs Arsen Torosyan regarding the increase of pensions. This was reported by the Government of Armenia.

The Prime Minister noted that a de jure decision must be made at the upcoming Government meeting to raise pensions by 10,000 dram and inquired which citizens would be affected and which would not.

The Minister of Labor and Social Affairs clarified that approximately 600,000 citizens would see their pensions increase by exactly 10,000 dram. “There are others who will receive more than 10,000 dram in the increase. There is an explanation for this: pensions are calculated using different formulas, and there are retirees from long-term military service whose calculations are slightly different. For many soldiers, for example, pensions will rise by 15,000 dram,” he explained. “In some cases, there are even instances where pensions currently exceeding 90,000 dram will increase by 5, 6, or 7 thousand dram.”

Arsen Torosyan added, “For those citizens for whom the increase will not be exactly 10,000, the average pension is now 96,000 dram. After this increase, it will become 105,000, meaning that on average, it still rises by about 8,500 dram, but for everyone else, it increases by exactly 10,000.”

Regarding whether this change would ensure that the average pension would not fall below the minimum consumer basket, the minister stated, “According to our latest data for the third quarter of 2025, the food minimum consumer basket is 61,768 dram. Our average pension from the previous quarter, before the increase, was 49,451 dram. With our new increase, it becomes 59,191 on average. This means that just the pension, without factoring in the arrears component, which we have also increased starting January 1, is already close to the minimum consumer basket. But we also have arrears, which are actively distributed. We currently have 415,000 citizens receiving this arrears, and the average amount is 7,000 dram. When we add 59,000 to 7,000, it results in 66,000 dram, which is higher than the minimum consumer basket by 4,500 dram.”

It was also noted that the number of beneficiaries receiving arrears through cashless transactions reached 415,000 in January and is on the rise. It was emphasized that as the average pension increases, so does the average amount of the arrears, which is predicted to amount to 8,700 dram, meaning the calculated 66,000 dram will be even higher.

Discussing the increase of pensions by 10,000 dram, the Prime Minister mentioned that the economic growth was projected at 5.1% for 2025, but recorded at 7.2%, and the pension increase is a numeric expression of economic growth.