The husband's pension was higher: when a widow can switch to his payments
After losing a husband or wife, pensioners often wonder if they can receive the deceased breadwinner’s pension instead of their own. In some cases, such a switch really allows for an increase in monthly payments, but this depends on the conditions defined by law as well as the amount of the deceased’s pension.
It has become known when a pensioner has the right to switch to a pension due to the loss of a breadwinner and how its amount is determined.
Who can switch to a pension due to the loss of a breadwinner
The Pension Fund explained the situation using the example of a 72-year-old woman. She receives an age pension of 4,650 UAH. In May of this year, her husband, who received a pension of 9,600 UAH, passed away. The woman inquired whether she has the right to switch to his pension.
According to the Law of Ukraine "On Compulsory State Pension Insurance," a wife who has reached retirement age, belongs to the disabled family members, and has the right to be granted a pension due to the loss of a breadwinner if at the time of the husband’s death they lived together.
What amount of pension can be received
The pension due to the loss of a breadwinner is assigned to one family member in the amount of 50% of the deceased breadwinner’s age pension.
In the given example, if the deceased husband’s pension was 9,600 UAH, the wife may be assigned 4,800 UAH, which corresponds to half of that amount.
Additionally, since the woman is 72 years old, she is entitled to a monthly compensatory payment to the pension in the amount of 300 UAH.
Thus, the total amount of her pension payment may be 5,100 UAH:
- 4,800 UAH — pension due to the loss of a breadwinner;
- 300 UAH — monthly compensatory payment by age.
Under these circumstances, switching from an age pension to a pension due to the loss of a breadwinner is reasonable, as the payment amount increases.
How to switch to another type of pension
To switch to a pension due to the loss of a breadwinner, it is necessary to submit an appropriate application and the required documents to the service center of the Pension Fund of Ukraine in a manner convenient for the applicant.
The transfer from one type of pension to another is carried out from the date of submission of the application along with the necessary documents.
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