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- Residential liability: It will be easier for orphaned children to get a housing certificate.
Residential liability: It will be easier for orphaned children to get a housing certificate.
The conditions for obtaining a housing certificate will be relaxed for orphaned children - such a bill was supported by the government. Now the potential recipient needs to confirm that during the year he worked and received a salary not lower than the minimum wage. And the new bill provides that in this case it is possible to take into account the income of the whole family, including the salary of the spouse and social benefits. Experts note that graduates of orphanages after the age of 18 actually find themselves on the street — they have to wait in line for housing for years and rent an apartment at their own expense. Housing certificates solve this problem only partially — their size often does not cover the market value of housing. Details can be found in the Izvestia article.
How are they planning to mitigate the conditions
Orphans may be able to mitigate the conditions for obtaining a housing certificate — the requirement for a mandatory income above the minimum wage during the year will be extended not only to children in orphanages, but also to their working spouses. The Cabinet of Ministers gave a positive review to such a bill, subject to its revision (the document is available to Izvestia).
Other conditions (reaching the age of 23, no tax arrears, mental illness and criminal record, as well as absence from the lists for assistance in a difficult life situation) remain.
"At the same time, it is advisable to establish a procedure for determining the corresponding average per capita income, as well as accounting for the income of other family members of the applicant," the draft government response says.
Information on income will need to be provided for the 12 calendar months preceding the month of filing the application, Vladimir Gruzdev, Chairman of the Board of the Russian Bar Association, explained to Izvestia.
"Income from labor, entrepreneurial and other activities not prohibited by law is taken into account," he said. — An important condition is the fact that citizens of this category have an average per capita income that exceeds the minimum wage set in the Russian Federation for themselves and their families.
Due to the fact that now the income of spouses is not taken into account, many face difficulties in receiving payments.
— Changes in legislation are aimed at eliminating problems related to the realization of the right of orphaned children to receive payments stipulated by law, — he said.
Such an addition will increase the chances of orphaned children to receive a housing certificate, Yana Lantratova, chairman of the State Duma Committee for the Development of Civil Society, confirmed to Izvestia. According to her, this is not the final version of the bill, it is planned to add accounting for child benefits, pensions or income of other existing relatives.
— For example, a couple has a child who receives social benefits. You can factor them into your income," she said.
Orphans cannot get housing
The problem of providing housing for orphans is systemic and has been dragging on for many years, experts interviewed by Izvestia stated.
The practice is replete with cases in which former children in orphanages are forced to seek the provision of their housing in court, said Regina Gilmanova, lawyer for the family and Inheritance Disputes practice at Sokolov, Trusov and Partners Law Firm in Moscow.
"It is not uncommon for apartments to be provided that do not meet the criteria of well—being, and the deadlines for fulfilling government obligations are delayed for years," she said.
According to the law on additional guarantees for the social support of orphaned children, they are guaranteed the provision of apartments - residential premises are provided after submitting an application upon reaching the age of 18.
By the end of 2023, the number of orphans waiting to receive housing decreased for the first time since 2011, the Accounts Chamber of the Russian Federation reported. Nevertheless, this number is still huge — in 2022 it was 190.8 thousand people, and in 2023 — 187.5 thousand. The report for 2024 is still being prepared, the Accounting Chamber told Izvestia.
So far, most regions of the country have not been able to find funds to prevent the formation of queues, often long-term, said the expert of the Popular Front. Analytics" by Sergey Voityuk.
— At the same time, those receiving benefits in kind may face the fact that the provided living space will not be the best. Moreover, the Popular Front has already identified cases of orphans settling in emergency homes unsuitable for habitation, as a result of which criminal cases were initiated against responsible officials," he said.
Alexey Golovan, head of the Complicity in Fate charity center and former Presidential Commissioner for Children's Rights, said that graduates of orphanages are forced to rent housing or live with friends or acquaintances due to a long waiting list.
— Only in some regions there is such a measure of support as the provision of funds for rental housing from the regional budget. In general, it's wrong when orphans have to rent an apartment at their own expense while waiting for housing," he said.
The Accounting Chamber in its report for 2023 also indicated that "the issue of the possibility of using a tool for indefinite rental of residential premises owned by regions and municipalities for the purpose of housing orphans has not been resolved."
In 2022, a high—profile law was passed, which brought graduates into the legal field, who were discharged "to nowhere" - they remained without housing and without registration. Now, after the age of 18, an orphan has the right to register at the address of the municipality where he lives, before actually providing him with housing. However, a person should take care of where he will live on his own. Nevertheless, having a residence permit facilitates his employment, as well as applying for benefits and allowances.
What is the problem with the housing certificate?
The number of orphans provided with housing in 2023 increased from 34.2 thousand to 37.5 thousand people in relation to 2022. At the same time, 9 thousand people used the housing certificate.
Regional certificates were used in 59 regions in 2023 (in 2022 — in 41 regions). The share of orphaned children provided with housing using regional certificates in the total number increased from 9.8% in 2022 to 18.7% in 2023 (from 4.9 thousand to 9 thousand).
In the Far Eastern Federal District, the average payout is 3.4 million rubles, in the Southern Federal District — 2.6 million, the Siberian Federal District and the Central Federal District — 2.5 million each, in the Northwestern Federal District — 2 million, in the Volga Federal District — 1.8 million, in the North Caucasus Federal District — 1.6 million. This may not be enough to purchase a studio apartment. In particular, on August 8, 2025, the Ministry of Construction of Dagestan awarded housing certificates to orphaned children, the amount of each of them "over 2 million rubles," the agency said.
Izvestia got acquainted with the offers for the sale of housing on the secondary market in Makhachkala — for this amount you can only buy apartments in unfinished houses, and you cannot use a certificate for such real estate. An apartment in which you can live immediately after purchase costs 3-3.5 million rubles.
The housing certificate is just an additional measure of support, Alexey Golovan noted.
Practice shows that certificates and subsidies provided for by law often cover only a small part of the costs, and orphans are forced to make up the remaining amount through loans, Regina Gilmanova also noted.
"When it comes to the most socially vulnerable group of the population, this approach actually shifts the financial burden on them, which contradicts the very meaning of the social guarantee," she said.
How will the new norm help orphans
The changes related to taking into account the income of a spouse when providing orphans with housing payments do not solve the key problem, said Regina Gilmanova.
— We are talking about a formal adjustment of the income calculation procedure, whereas the main reason for the unavailability of housing for this category of citizens is the disproportionality of the payments provided to the real cost of apartments, — she said. — Thus, making changes to the accounting procedure for income cannot be considered an effective measure.
According to her, the legal gap is not in the income calculation methodology, but in the absence of an effective mechanism for the implementation of state guarantees and adequate financing of the program.
In 2024, the Popular Front sent information to the president of the country that not all orphans could receive payments due to problems with income confirmation, Sergei Voityuk said.
— It didn't matter how much his family earned. As a result, the potential recipient of the certificate was deprived of the opportunity to use it due to a bureaucratic formality," he said. — Now the initiative to correct this injustice has received the support of the government, thanks to which many orphans will be able to realize their legal right to receive state support faster.
The new bill will help make housing for orphans more affordable, Alexey Golovan believes.
— For example, a graduate of an orphanage received social benefits on maternity leave, but they were not taken into account. Her husband earned enough, but it was not taken into account. And the girl was refused housing due to the fact that her income was allegedly below the subsistence level. This is unfair and illogical," he said.
According to experts, the adoption of the bill will make it possible to fairly calculate family income and increase the number of orphans who will be able to apply for a certificate.
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