IDPs: what payments and benefits are due, refugee assistance programs

Who are the migrants

Migrants are persons who, voluntarily or forcedly, left their permanent place of residence and moved to new conditions.

Russian legislation clearly explains the concept of “forced migrant”, meaning by this those citizens of the Russian Federation or members of their families who were subjected to violence, persecution on national, religious, racial, linguistic grounds, as well as political beliefs and were forced to leave their permanent place of residence ( Article 1 of Federal Law No. 4530-1). At the same time, the law states that it applies to those citizens who lived both in Russia and abroad.

Important: To obtain migrant status, a person must contact the relevant government authorities by filing a petition.

Pension system

According to the department, payment of pensions at the new place of residence can be carried out this month according to additional statements or next month. Payment of pensions is carried out from the first day of the month following the one before which the pension was paid at the previous place of residence.

This may be due to the fact that the work of notaries in the ATO zone is not controlled by the Ukrainian authorities and the possibility of fraud or forgery of documents (powers of attorney) cannot be ruled out. We invite you to consider a specific example of how to process a pension transfer. According to the Donetsk Regional State Administration, about 700 thousand people in the region did not receive a pension.

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Migrant reception statistics

The Ministry of Internal Affairs keeps records of internal movements within the country, in other words, migration records. Migration records are also kept for persons who arrived in Russia from other states.

Over the past five years, the largest number of people arrived in the Russian Federation from Ukraine. This is explained by military operations, as a result of which Ukrainians are forced to leave their homes and seek refuge in the territories of neighboring states, as well as against this background by a decline in the standard of living in the country, due to which people come to Russia for the purpose of employment.

The most preferred regions where Ukrainian citizens arrive are Rostov, Belgorod, Moscow, Leningrad regions, Krasnodar, Stavropol territories. A sufficient number of people travel to more remote regions (Siberia). These are the areas and cities that people choose to live on their own.

Reasons for relocation

If we talk about migrants who are citizens of the Russian Federation (based on Federal Law No. 4530-1), then among the reasons that may influence a change of place of residence, we will indicate those specified in the law. Reasons for a forced migrant changing his/her place of residence:

violence against a citizen and his family;
the pursuit;
real danger of persecution.

The circumstances under which the above illegal actions are committed are:

race, nationality;
religious sign;
linguistic feature;
political beliefs.

If we talk about displaced persons in general, looking at the situation in Ukraine, circumstances such as military operations (search for safe living conditions), economic downturn (unemployment) may also serve as reasons.

Help for displaced people

The Russian state provides financial assistance to forced migrants in the form of a one-time benefit for each family member. In accordance with Government Decree No. 724, the amount of payments is:

100 rubles – adults, children;
150 rubles – low-income people.

To receive payments, citizens must contact the territorial body of the Ministry of Internal Affairs with an application in which they indicate all family members who arrived with them.

Certificate: If a person is recognized as poor, he must provide a certificate of recognition as such in accordance with Federal Law No. 134.

Registration of Pensioners from the ATO Zone to Receive a Pension in Ukraine

The completed application must be submitted to an official at the regional headquarters for issues related to the social security of Ukrainian citizens who are moving from temporarily occupied territory and areas of the anti-terrorist operation.

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The holding of “elections” on November 2 on the territory of the “DPR” and “LPR”, not in accordance with the legislation of Ukraine, only worsened the situation for residents of the temporarily occupied areas. The Ukrainian authorities warned the local population about the responsibility and consequences of participating in illegal voting. The world community does not and will not recognize the legitimacy of these “elections”; therefore, this territory will have the status of “unrecognized territory” by all countries in terms of their statehood, with all the negative consequences for its inhabitants economically and socially. Today, all such unrecognized territories have an underdeveloped economy and low incomes. In accordance with the announced results of these “elections” and “taking office,” the leadership of the “DPR” and “LPR” must assume full responsibility for paying pensions and social benefits in these territories. However, the population was once again told that “there are no funds to pay pensions and social benefits.” Before the elections on November 2, 2024. The DPR promised and partially paid social benefits to certain categories of citizens, but after the elections these payments stopped (“Social payments in the DPR”).

Obtaining forced migrant status: procedure, documents

Obtaining the status of a forced migrant, according to Federal Law No. 4530-1, occurs in the territorial bodies of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. A person can file a petition personally or through a proxy. Or you can submit an application through the State Services website.

Attention! If you submit an application online on the State Services portal, you must verify it with an electronic signature.

The following package of documents is attached to the application:

passport or other identification document;
birth certificate (for children under 14 years of age);
Marriage certificate;
two photos (for adults, for children);
documents confirming relationship;
power of attorney (if a representative applies).

Documents are reviewed within three days. As a result, a notification is sent to the applicant. If the decision is positive, the person is issued a certificate recognizing him as a forced migrant.

Forced migrant certificate

Rights of internally displaced persons

The list of rights is provided for in Art. 4 Federal Law No. 4530-1. Let's list them:

the right to a one-time benefit;
the right to be provided with a place in a center for the accommodation of displaced persons in the absence of the ability to independently find a place of residence;
accommodation in the resettlement center, food supply;
the right to medical care and medication in institutions;
assistance in moving to a new place of residence.

In turn, visitors are required to adhere to the rules and regulations of living in the accommodation center, undergo a medical examination, and provide truthful and accurate information about themselves in order to obtain status.

IDPs and refugees: what's the difference?

Refugees are people who left their country in which they lived for many years due to war or emergency circumstances. Immigrants can migrate within their own state. In this case, the reason for relocation may be completely different (participation in a resettlement program in the Russian Federation, search for safe conditions as a result of persecution and persecution, etc.). In addition, refugee is more widespread.

IDPs in Ukraine: number, support

In Ukraine, displaced persons are persons who left their permanent place of residence as a result of hostilities in the Donbass (anti-terrorist operation). Residents of Crimea who have moved to Ukrainian settlements are also entitled to receive migrant status.

As of December 2021, the number of such individuals has increased to 1.6 million. The bulk of those who left are young people and middle-aged people. This figure indicates only those people who have been issued a migrant certificate and who have registered with the social protection authorities.

In fact, the number of people from Lugansk and Donetsk who left their homes is much higher, since not everyone officially formalizes this status. In addition, part of the population of the LPR and DPR republics travels to nearby countries (Russia, Belarus, Poland).

In Ukraine, back in 2014, Law No. 1706-VII was adopted, regulating the rights of persons displaced from the ATO zone, and a number of resolutions of the Cabinet of Ministers. The legislation of the country regulates the issues of acquiring status, guaranteeing rights, and receiving financial assistance. International charitable foundations and volunteer organizations provide assistance in providing psychological and legal assistance, finding work, housing, providing food and clothing, obtaining grants for starting a business, etc.

Information: International organizations such as Caritas, Donbass-SOS, and the Norwegian Refugee Council provide assistance to displaced people in Kyiv, Kharkov, and other cities.

Pensioners in the ATO zone were left without pensions

If you dig deeper, it turns out that they have prepared an almost impossible task for pensioners. At the beginning of October, ministers adopted a resolution on the registration of “displaced persons.” According to it, everyone who has moved is obliged to go first to the State Emergency Service department, and then to the social security fund. However, personal presence is not enough. We also need those local residents who will settle refugees in their homes. Homeowners in “peaceful territory” are required to have the main tenant present with statements and copies of passports of everyone registered in the apartment stating that they do not object to the fact that a displaced person from the ATO zone lives with them. The bureaucracy doesn't end there. Expect that within two weeks an authorized person from the housing office or village council will visit the address to check whether a migrant from the east of the country really lives here. But a personal visit by a specialist will not be enough: you will also need certificates from two neighbors and copies of their passports. As a “bonus” for suffering if the procedure is successful, the state undertakes to pay 884 hryvnia per month along with the pension. Even in this situation, gigantic queues have already formed in the social funds of the cities closest to the ATO zone.

— Those who want to receive pensions and social payments are required to obtain a migrant certificate before December 1. The certificate will indicate their place of residence and the address where funds will be transferred outside the ATO zone, the minister emphasized.

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Payments to displaced people from the ATO zone

In Ukraine, payments are due to all those persons who have registered this status with the social protection authorities. What payments are provided to migrants:

targeted assistance for paying for housing and communal services;
pension;
assistance at the birth of a baby and child care up to 3 years old;
assistance to low-income families.

Targeted assistance is paid to cover housing maintenance costs (utilities). To receive these payments, a person must be registered on the official website in the register of migrants from the ATO zone. Initially, when applying, you need to have a certificate of resettlement, then every six months you will have to re-register targeted assistance so that the state continues to pay it.

Receiving a pension for migrants from the ATO zone is a rather complicated procedure. Firstly, a citizen who has left the war zone must obtain a migrant certificate in order to receive a pension. And only then submit an application to the Pension Fund to make payments to the new address. After applying to the Pension Fund, the pensioner must wait for verification at the new place of residence. Employees of social services and pension authorities must make sure that the person has really moved and lives in the controlled territory. Only after this procedure will he be paid a pension.

Interesting: Re-registration of pensions for internally displaced persons may be required in cases where the pensioner returned home to the ATO zone and stayed there for more than 2 months. The pension is stopped being paid until the person applies to the Pension Fund again.

IDPs may lose payments

Lawyers spoke about changes that affect the payment of targeted assistance to IDPs. Tribune correspondents learned about this from the material “Legal Advisor for IDPs.” According to Resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers dated October 1, 2014 No. 505, monthly targeted assistance to internally displaced persons is assigned to a family and paid to one of its members, subject to written consent in any form regarding the payment of monetary assistance to him from other family members. The relevant resolution also defines clear conditions under which such assistance is not prescribed. This applies, in particular, but not exclusively, to cases when one of the family members owns a residential premises/part of a residential premises located in any regions of Ukraine, except ORDLO, the Autonomous Republic of Crimea, settlements located on the contact line, except residential premises that:

unsuitable for habitation, as confirmed by the relevant technical condition certificate;
belong to a family that includes military personnel from among the IDPs who defend the independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine and take direct part in measures to ensure national security and defense, repulse and deter the armed aggression of the Russian Federation (except for persons who acquired ownership rights for account of public funds after the start of the ATO).

An authorized representative of the family who has been assigned monetary assistance is obliged to notify the social security authority that assigned the assistance about a change in circumstances affecting the assignment of benefits within three days from the date such circumstances arose. At the same time, according to the Resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers dated October 1, 2014 No. 505, the payment of targeted assistance stops from the next month in the event of:

submission by an authorized representative of the family of an application to terminate the payment of benefits;
providing information to the state employment service that able-bodied family members have not been employed within 4 months with the assistance of the state employment service or are in labor relations with employers in temporarily occupied territories and settlements located on the contact line, but are not actually working;
deregistration of IDPs;
identification by the authorized body of the fact of providing false information or failure to report changes in circumstances affecting the assignment of benefits;
death of IDPs.

Please note that if there are changes in the composition of your family after marriage that may affect the payment of targeted assistance, you need to: 1. make sure that you have really lost the right to receive targeted assistance. In fact, if the second spouse owns housing in a territory controlled by the Ukrainian government, the right to assistance is lost. However, you can continue to receive targeted assistance if:

housing that belongs to your husband or wife is unfit for habitation and there is a corresponding deed, OR
if your husband or wife is an IDP military personnel, participates in deterring the armed aggression of the Russian Federation and received the right of ownership of housing in the controlled territory before the start of the ATO.

2. If the right to targeted assistance is nevertheless lost, you need to immediately notify in writing the social protection authority with which you are registered as an IDP about the change in circumstances. Payment of assistance should be stopped from next month. In case of failure to report a change in circumstances, the payment of benefits will be terminated after discovery of this fact by the social protection authority. However, amounts of cash assistance received after the right to assistance was lost will have to be returned

Economics - June 16, 2021 12076

Tags: Targeted assistance, Temporary displaced people, Forced migrants, Payments to displaced people, Cabinet of Ministers, Ministry of Migrant Affairs, IDPs, IDPs from Donbass, IDPs from Lugansk, IDPs from the ATO zone, IDPs from Donbass, Assistance to IDPs We
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Migrants in Germany: moving to permanent residence

In 2021, the “Late Migrants” program is operating in Germany, the essence of which is the return to their homeland of Germans who were previously forced to leave this country. The list of such circumstances is specified in the German law “On Displaced Citizens and Refugees”. These include:

persecution by authorities during World War II;
persecution by the National Socialists in 1933.

Under the program, status can be obtained not only by a person who was forced to leave Germany, but also by members of his family (children and spouse). Thus, if desired, Germans living in Russia, if there are grounds, have the right to apply for permanent residence.

Economy Pensioners from the ATO zone were threatened with deprivation of pensions

The Slavyansk Pension Fund office also confirmed to us that there were no cases where pensioners were caught in the act when receiving a double pension. “If there is a complete package of documents, we pay pensions to everyone. There is no database for exchanging information with the DPR. Therefore, it is impossible to prove that a person receives money both here and here. We have not had such cases. I think this is yet another horror story from the authorities,” a PF employee from Slavyansk told Vesti.

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“As of the end of May of this year, 575.3 thousand pensioners have already transferred pension payments from uncontrolled to territory controlled by the Ukrainian authorities and are receiving payments on time. However, another 169.0 thousand pensioners did not make such a decision,” says the Regional State Administration. According to the department, there are no arrears in payments.

Resettlement programs: conditions for participants, stages, documents

In the Russian Federation there are special programs for the resettlement of compatriots. Within the framework of such programs, it is possible to move to priority settlement territories (Kamchatka, Amur, Magadan regions, Sakhalin, Yakutia, Transbaikalia), etc. In this way, the government improves the demographic situation by returning compatriots to their homeland, assisting them in this by providing citizenship and some benefits (material assistance, employment).

Lawyers explained how displaced people can get back their pension arrears

Human rights activists gave an example of how you can inherit the pension of a relative who is an immigrant through the court, reports “Gromada Skhid”.

News on the topic Oschadbank reported how pensions will be issued after the opening of checkpoints. In particular, they said that their client’s sister died in 2015, she did not have her own family, so the woman became the only heir. The woman could not immediately process all the Ukrainian documents because she lived in uncontrolled Yasinovataya. The inheritance consisted only of the sister’s lost pension - 21,188 UAH.

Human rights activists explained step by step what needs to be done to receive pension arrears from the Pension Fund.

At the first stage, the woman needs to go to court to establish the fact of her sister’s death, and based on such a court decision, the Civil Registry Office will issue a death certificate.

“Citizens of Ukraine who reside temporarily (OT - ed.) very often encounter similar problems. In this situation, there is an algorithm of actions that has been developed over the years. A person who intends to obtain a Ukrainian-style death certificate must receive a written refusal from the Civil Registry Office and apply to the court to establish the fact of death. It should be noted that in this case the court fee is not paid (Clause 21, Article 5 of the Law of Ukraine “On Court Fees”). The application must be accompanied by evidence, for example, copies of medical documents issued by the occupation administration, physical evidence, etc.,” they explained.

The second stage is to apply to the court to establish an additional period for accepting the inheritance after the death of the sister.

“The law provides for a 6-month period for accepting an inheritance. If the heir missed the specified period, it is considered that the heir did not accept it. However, there are also valid reasons for omission, in which the court can determine an additional period for accepting the inheritance (Article 1272 of the Civil Code of Ukraine),” the lawyers added.

Human rights activists also told how the trial of the displaced woman who contacted them ended.

“The PFU management in its letter referred to Art. 46 of the Law of Ukraine “On Compulsory Pension Insurance”, the norms of which regulate the relationship between the pensioner and the Pension Fund in the event of a pensioner’s personal application. In this case, this rule cannot be applied, because it does not apply to legal relations regarding the receipt of a pension that has been inherited. Such actions violate the client’s rights to receive all property,” concluded Inna Kurakina.

The court agreed with her rationale for the claim and satisfied the plaintiff’s demands in full.

As we wrote earlier, in the Donetsk region there are 274 thousand pensioners - internally displaced persons. The balances on their accounts amount to UAH 2.1 billion. Today, 112 thousand internally displaced persons are those who have not received payment cards.

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Reasons for not being recognized as a migrant

Status can be denied for several reasons. Among them:

untimely application for migrant status (the law sets a period of 12 months);
relocation due to famine, epidemic, emergency;
committing a crime against humanity or other serious crimes.

The person is given a written notice of refusal. Thus, not everyone can apply for displaced person status.