The Russian Pension Fund issued 725,000 maternity capital certificates in 2017. More than 8.5 million certificates have been issued since the program took effect.
An improvement of living conditions remains the most popular way of spending maternity capital: 91% of all applicants choose this option. Over 5 million Russian families have improved their living conditions thanks to the program by now. Some 3.3 million of them used maternity capital funds to repay mortgage loans either fully or partially, while more than 1.9 million families improved their living conditions without a loan.
The PRF also received over 0.5 million applications for spending maternity capital funds on children’s education, almost 4,000 applications for investing maternity capital funds in mother’s funded pension, and 131 applications for using the funds for social adjustment and integration of children with disabilities.
Fifty-eight percent of certificate holders have fully spent their maternity capital.
Importantly, a number of significant additions were made to the maternity capital program in 2018.
First of all, the Pension Fund has been receiving applications from needy families for monthly payments of maternity capital funds since January 1. Only those families where the second child is born or adopted after January 1, 2018, qualify for such payments.
Secondly, the three-year moratorium on spending maternity capital funds on pre-school education of children has been lifted.
Finally, the deadline for joining the maternity capital program has been extended until December 31, 2021. This means that families with children qualifying for the certificate born or adopted before December 31, 2021, will be entitled to maternity capital. There are no deadlines for receiving the certificate or spending maternity capital funds.
Maternity capital stands at 453,000 in 2018.