From October 1, all pensions or parts of the retirement benefit not exceeding €420 will be raised. "That is to say that pensions up to €420 will be indexed in entirety while if the pension exceeds €420, only the €420 will be indexed but the part that doesn't exceed this will not," said the Welfare Minister.
But politically repressed people, as well as disabled people and those who partook in liquidating the consequences of the Chernobyl disaster will have their pensions indexed in entirety even if they exceed the €420 threshold.
At this time, the minister said, old age pensions are tied to the time the person has spent in the job market. For example, those who have paid their social insurance contributions for up to 29 years will have their pension grow 7.19% but the pension will grow 9.77% for those who have worked for 45 years and more.
For example, someone with a pension of €250 and a history of paying social insurance for 45 years and more will have their pension grow by €24.4 a month. The maximum possible increase under the scheme is €45, she said.
Petraviča stressed that this is the largest-ever pension increase in Latvian history, with €207m allotted to the task.
But this is partially a reallocation of resources as other benefits have been cut.
