Approximately 4.8 million self-employed Russians are shaping their own retirement plans
In Russia, around 4.8 million self-employed individuals are contributing to their own pensions through annual mandatory payments, effective from January 2025. This group includes self-employed professionals such as individual entrepreneurs, lawyers, notaries, and heads of peasant farms.
Under current regulations, these self-employed contributors are required to make a fixed annual contribution of nearly 43,000 rubles towards their pension. This contribution accumulates one pension coefficient per year. To be eligible for a pension, a minimum of 30 coefficients is required.
Data from the Social Fund reveals that contributions from entrepreneurs and other mandatory payment contributors have exceeded 144 billion rubles this year.
If the mandatory contributions prove insufficient, self-employed individuals have the option to make voluntary contributions towards their pension fund. Additionally, those working under the tax on professional income can also use this method to form their pension capital. Unlike individual entrepreneurs or notaries, self-employed individuals are not obligated to make pension insurance contributions, so they ensure their future pension through voluntary payments.
To facilate these contributions, individuals must submit an application to the fund following their registration as a contributor. This can be done through the "My Tax" mobile app, the government services portal, or by visiting the nearest Social Fund client service. Payment frequency is determined by the self-employed individual, who can make a single payment or divide it into several installments. This year, the minimum voluntary pension contribution for self-employed individuals is slightly over 59,000 rubles, which allows for the accumulation of approximately one pension coefficient per year.
From January to April 2025, 26,500 self-employed Russians made voluntary contributions to their future pensions, totaling 373.7 million rubles.
Self-employed individuals who hire employees from socially vulnerable categories may be eligible for state financial support. This support is extended when the entrepreneur hires a veteran of a special military operation or a person with a disability, among others. After hiring, the entrepreneur can apply to the Social Fund for a subsidy to cover part of the wages for the hired employees. Additionally, the entrepreneur can apply to the fund for compensation for equipment for workplaces for people with disabilities.
The Russian pension system for self-employed individuals operates through a combination of mandatory and voluntary arrangements, but with some key differences from traditional employment contracts. For instance, self-employed people who are not registered under specific tax regimes are typically not required to make mandatory social or pension contributions, and their pension rights are not accumulated unless they voluntarily pay into the system. On the other hand, those who register under special tax regimes have a portion of their tax allocated to pension and medical insurance, albeit at a lower rate compared to salaried employees.
The System does not provide a unified, high-contribution mandatory pension system for all self-employed individuals. Instead, it encourages registration and voluntary compliance rather than enforcing broad-based pension contributions for all independent workers.
- In addition to the mandatory contributions, self-employed individuals in Russia can also make voluntary payments towards their personal-finance, specifically their pension fund, to ensure a secure future.
- For those who wish to augment their mandatory contributions, personal-finance management includes the option to make voluntary contributions, with a minimum of 59,000 rubles allowing for the accumulation of approximately one pension coefficient each year.
