The promised 12% will turn into only 2%: pensioners will face disappointment in indexation

The Ukrainian government has announced plans to index pensions for 2026, but it is important to note that not all pensioners will receive the same increase.

The Cabinet of Ministers approved an indexation coefficient of 1.121, which provides for a pension increase of approximately 12.1%. However, this increase applies only to those citizens who retired before 2020. For other pensioners, the increase will be significantly lower.

For example, persons who received a pension in 2021-2022 can count on an increase of only 6.1%. For those who became pensioners after that, the percentage of increase will be even lower – the smallest is noted for pensions in 2025, where an increase of only 2.4% is provided.

Lawyer Ivan Khomych noted that the current indexation mechanism is quite complicated, and even specialists often have to spend a lot of time on calculations. He noted that the actual increases may be much lower than pensioners expect.

Thus, with an average pension in Ukraine of 6,544 hryvnias, a person who retires in 2025 will receive only about 157 hryvnias due to indexation with a coefficient of 2.4%. In addition, the lawyer noted that part of previously received allowances may be canceled, which indicates a situation where “they give with one hand and take away with the other”.

The lawyer gave another example: for a person who retired in 2023, the total indexation coefficient in a few years may be about 35%, in which case the increase to the average pension could reach approximately 2,290 hryvnias, but the actual increase will most likely be much smaller.

For more detailed information on the indexation of pensions in 2026 and how it can be calculated, you need to follow the current news. Ukrainians can also expect to receive additional pension benefits.