Work more: how retirement conditions will change in 2025.
What Should Be the Work Experience to Retire
It is important to note that the right to receive a pension upon reaching retirement age is determined by the accumulated insurance experience, which refers to the period during which an individual is subject to mandatory state pension insurance and for which monthly insurance contributions have been paid in an amount not less than the minimum insurance contribution.
1 From January 1 to December 31, 2025, individuals with at least 32 years of insurance experience are eligible to retire at the age of 60.
"For those who do not have the required insurance experience by the time they turn 60, it is stipulated that they can retire at 63 if they have between 22 and 32 years of insurance experience, or at 65 if they have between 15 and 22 years of insurance experience. However, although this is not explicitly stated, territorial pension fund authorities consider: if an individual acquires the necessary years of insurance experience in subsequent periods after turning 60, such as at 61 or 62, they may retire without waiting for the next retirement age threshold, which is 63 or 65, under the conditions that were applicable at the time the individual turned 60,” noted Elena Voronkova, a lawyer at the Ivan Khomich Law Office.
For those who do not have the required insurance experience by the time they turn 60, it is stipulated that they can retire at 63 if they have between 22 and 32 years of insurance experience, or at 65 if they have between 15 and 22 years of insurance experience.
For example: if an individual has 31 years of experience out of the required 32 at the age of 60 and works for one more year, they have the right to retire at the corresponding age — either 60 or 61.
How to Determine the Insurance Experience Required for Retirement
At the same time, according to a specialist, updates to pension legislation are already known.
2 "Overall, some fundamental changes are being made, but regarding the requirements for experience and age, the norms of the relevant articles have simply been edited by removing outdated provisions," says Voronkova.
Under the new conditions, to qualify for a pension, an individual needs to reach 60 years of age, and after 2028, they will need to have 35 years of experience.
3 Retirement: What Will Change and When
Therefore, until 2028, for instance, in the current year, 2025, one needs to have at least 32 years of insurance experience. However, changes will occur thereafter.
If the required insurance experience is lacking at 60, an individual can retire at 63 years. However, they must have at least 25 years of insurance experience.
"But until 2028, the norms similar to the current ones have been retained, meaning in 2025, a minimum experience of 22 to 32 years is required,” adds the lawyer.
If the required insurance experience is lacking at 60, an individual can retire at 63 years. However, they must have at least 25 years of insurance experience.
The next milestone is the age of 65. In this case, if the necessary insurance experience is lacking at 60 and 63 years, an individual can retire at 65, having at least 25 years of experience, and before 2028, for example, in 2025, they need to have between 15 and 22 years of experience.
"In principle, until 2028, the same requirements for retirement have been left in place. However, for those retiring after 2028, there will be requirements for a greater number of years of insurance experience. On a positive note, it can be noted that it will finally be established that if the necessary insurance experience is absent on the date of reaching the age, a pension can be granted after the individual acquires the insurance experience by the time they reach the corresponding age," she explained.
Additionally, the pension is granted upon an individual's request starting from the day following the day they reach retirement age, provided that the request is made no later than three months after reaching that age.
4 What to Do If You Lack Insurance Experience for Retirement
If there is not enough insurance experience, it is possible to purchase it voluntarily by participating in the mandatory social insurance system.
Voluntary participation in pension insurance can be taken by both insured and uninsured individuals over the age of 16. There is also an option to pay contributions on behalf of third parties.
If there is not enough insurance experience, it is possible to purchase it voluntarily by participating in the mandatory social insurance system.
To do this, one needs to conclude a contract on the web portal of electronic services of the Pension Fund of Ukraine. The individual independently determines how long they wish to pay contributions after signing the contract, the frequency of payments, and their amount. The sums of the paid contributions are credited for the month in which the funds were received in the account of the Pension Fund of Ukraine.
5 If a potential retiree is currently not officially employed, meaning they are not an insured individual, then it is advisable to conclude a contract for voluntary participation in the mandatory state social insurance system for a period of at least one year (experience is purchased one month at a time at the rate applicable in that month).
The amount of the contribution is determined by the individual, but it must be at least 22% of the minimum wage (set at 8000 UAH from 01.04.2024). Furthermore, it is not necessary to renew the contract annually; as long as contributions are paid for each month, the contract will automatically renew and will end if the individual is officially employed. In that case, the employer will then pay the unified contribution on behalf of the individual.