They Want to Introduce 'Basic Pensions'. When and for Whom?

Not long before the elections, the ruling politicians came to an unexpected conclusion - it turns out that old-age pensions do not correspond to the real cost of living. Therefore, the idea arose to introduce so-called 'basic' pensions. The previous government had already instructed the Ministry of Welfare to present a corresponding report by May 28 of this year. However, the government only reviewed the report now, three months late. Nevertheless, better late than never. So, what does the Ministry of Welfare propose? To introduce the 'basic' pension gradually - depending on the age of the senior. They plan to start with pensioners aged 85 and older, as they have the lowest pensions - the average pension without an additional payment for seniority is 503 euros, with an additional payment - 586 euros. For comparison: the overall average pension in Latvia is 640 euros without an additional payment for seniority, and 679.21 euros with an additional payment. It is important to emphasize here: we are talking specifically about the average pension. There are those who receive pensions over 1000 euros, but there are also elderly people who are trying to survive on a pension of 400 euros. What does the Ministry of Welfare propose? Starting from January 1, 2027, to pay pensioners aged 85 and older an additional payment for seniority up to 1996, taking into account indexing (3.25 euros for each year of seniority up to and including 1996) and for 1997 and all subsequent years, if the pensioner continued to work, 2.34 euros. This will require an additional 13.4 million euros from the budget next year. And then, each year, to expand the category of pensioners who will receive such an additional payment for seniority. At the same time, the Ministry of Welfare does not rule out that those with very large pensions may be excluded from this system of payments. However, the amount of pension for those who will not be included in this system has not yet been determined. In any case, since the introduction of the basic pension system is associated with budget expenditures for the next and subsequent years, the final decision on this issue will apparently be made by the next Saeima and government.