RBC-Ukraine discusses the key changes effective from March 1 in the material below. This information is reported by Contracts.UA.
How Much Pensions Will Increase
The annual pension indexation in Ukraine will proceed as planned - starting from March 1, 2025. Following the recalculation, payments will, on average, increase by 11.5%.
The projected pension growth after indexation will amount to 556 UAH, raising the average pension in Ukraine from 5789 UAH to 6345 UAH.
At the same time, the increase cannot be less than 100 UAH and cannot exceed 1500 UAH.
As noted by Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal, the indexation will affect over 10 million pensioners, including: retirees, former military personnel, Chernobyl survivors, those receiving pensions for special merits, former officials, and scientists.
Additionally, elderly pensioners will receive supplements starting from March 1 if their payments are less than 3758 UAH (individuals aged 65 and older with at least 35 years of service for men and 30 years for women, and individuals aged 80 and above with at least 25/20 years of service for men and women respectively).
Individuals aged 70 to 80 with at least 35/30 years of service for men and women, receiving pensions below 3613 UAH will be granted a monthly supplement to their pension to reach the specified amount.
Others, regardless of age and service, who receive a pension, are not working, and whose monthly pension payments do not reach 3038 UAH, will also receive a monthly supplement to reach the specified amount.
Which Medications Will Become Cheaper
The National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine approved a decision in February to ensure the accessibility of medications. This plan includes a price reduction for the most popular drugs from Ukrainian pharmaceutical manufacturers by an average of 30% starting from March 1, 2025.
Around 200 items will be included in the list of medications that will become cheaper in March. These include medications in the form of tablets, drops, powders, and solutions:
- used for coughs and colds;
- antihistamines;
- anti-inflammatory and anti-rheumatic;
- vitamins and trace elements;
- medications for blood pressure;
- anti-ulcer drugs;
- tranquilizers;
- eye drops;
- nasal sprays, etc.
More than 70 items are included in the National List of Medications, and another 35 are prescription drugs. The full list of medications with reduced prices can be found on the Ministry of Health's website here.
Extension of Reservation Period
According to updated reservation rules that came into effect in December, all critically important enterprises were required to confirm their status and re-reserve employees by February 28, 2025.
However, the Cabinet of Ministers has extended this deadline by one month due to a cyberattack by the Russian Federation on state registries at the end of last year.
Thus, the deferment for reserved employees will be valid until March 31, 2025. By this date, enterprises must confirm their critical status and re-reserve their workers. This can be done online via the "Diia" portal.
After updating their critical status, enterprises will be able to reserve employees without delay until April 1. The reservation will be valid for 12 months.
Return to Service After AWOL
On March 1, the simplified algorithm for returning to military service after unauthorized absence (AWOL) will cease to be effective.
Military personnel have been able to submit a report for return through "Army+" and restore payments and social guarantees within 72 hours. Additionally, they can transfer to another service location within three days with a recommendation letter from the selected unit.
As noted by the Ministry of Defense, after March 1, the mechanism for returning from AWOL will continue to operate, but not in the simplified form, and there will be delays in restoring payments.
"After March 1, it will still be possible to return to service, but not through this simplified algorithm via Army+. Restoration of service in this case may take several months. And until that moment, the financial support and other guarantees will not be restored", the Ministry of Defense stated.
Recall that in November last year, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky signed a law that abolishes penalties for military personnel who voluntarily return to service after their first unauthorized absence.
Who Will Have Their Declaration with the Family Doctor Annulled
On March 1, 2025, the verification period for data in the Electronic Health System (EHS) will end.
The declarations of some patients will be annulled, after which they will lose access to state-guaranteed medical services (they will have to register a new declaration).
The risk of declaration annulment exists for the following categories of Ukrainians who do not update their data with their family doctor by March 1:
- children under 14 years old need verification of data from birth certificates and identification codes;
- children aged 14 and over who have received an ID card (biometric passport). The data from this must be entered into the declaration instead of the birth certificate;
- patients who have changed personal data: last name, received a new passport, or changed their phone number;
- patients who registered a declaration in 2018. At that time, the tax number was not mandatory, and it may not be in the database, which could lead to automatic annulment;
- individuals who have not visited a doctor for over three years.
Clock Change
Traditionally, on the last Sunday of March, Ukrainians move their clocks forward by one hour. "Daylight Saving Time" in 2025 is set to begin on the night of March 29 to 30.
However, this may not happen, as last year the Verkhovna Rada passed a law to establish a permanent "winter time" in Ukraine.
The authors of the law justified the need to abolish the practice of changing clocks for several reasons: the negative impact on health of "time jumps," strengthening national security, as Russia sets Moscow's "daylight saving time" in occupied territories, and the questionable effect of energy savings.
Nevertheless, the law on "winter time" has not yet come into force. It is pending the president's signature since August 2024.
How Many Holidays and Weekends in March 2025
In March, Ukraine will celebrate International Women's Day. This is a public holiday that should be a day off. Since March 8, 2025, falls on a Saturday, Ukrainians in peacetime would have enjoyed an extended weekend from March 8-10. However, under martial law, all additional days off have been canceled.
Among other important professional and church holidays in March:
- March 2 - Forgiveness Sunday;
- March 3 - the first day of Lent;
- March 9-10 - Shevchenko Days (anniversaries of the birth and death of Taras Shevchenko);
- March 25 - Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary;
- March 25 - Day of the Security Service of Ukraine;
- March 26 - National Guard Day.
In total, March 2025 will have 21 working days and 10 weekends (Saturdays and Sundays): 1, 2, 8, 9, 15, 16, 22, 23, 29, and 30.
Sources include publications from the Government Portal, Pension Fund, Ministry of Defense, and Ministry of Health, as well as messages from the Telegram channel "Government Hotline."