PFU will start taking money from pensioners' accounts: who is at risk.

The government of Ukraine has changed the rules for managing the pension accounts of internally displaced persons according to the new State Budget for 2025. Under the new rules, the Pension Fund of Ukraine can return funds from the accounts of displaced pensioners. This was reported by Channel 24.

The changes apply to citizens who received the status of internally displaced persons before the full-scale invasion of Russia on February 24, 2022, and have accounts in Oschadbank. To receive a refund, they must not perform any transactions on the account for a year and must not be able to undergo physical identification for six months.

Video identification of pensioners / Photo: Unsplash

These changes do not affect accounts with other banking institutions, as pension accounts for internally displaced persons were usually opened in Oschadbank. Additionally, it is prohibited to withdraw money from the account with arrest or other legal encumbrances, which serves as additional protection for pensioners.

The procedure for restoring pension payments stipulates that a pensioner can contact the territorial department of the Pension Fund or Oschadbank. The state guarantees the restoration of payments after the pensioner’s personal appeal. To ensure the continuity of payments, displaced pensioners need to regularly undergo physical identification and perform financial transactions on the account.

It is important to note that if the pension payment is temporarily suspended due to identification non-compliance, the funds accumulate in the account until successful verification. After confirmation of the identity, pensions for the entire interruption period are fully recalculated and paid.