Who is a dependent: the concept, how it is regulated by law

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Published: 04/17/2020

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Russians quite often come across the concept of dependents. It can occur when making any social payments, during the process of registering an inheritance, when receiving a loan or going through bankruptcy proceedings. The concept of “dependent” in Russian law does not have any negative connotation. Let's figure out who is considered a dependent under the law, and what rights and responsibilities they have.

• Concept
• Who are considered dependents
• When to claim existing dependents
• Rights of dependents When applying for a pension
• When reducing staff
• When registering an inheritance

Who are dependents: description, rights, responsibilities and interesting facts

• Upon loss of a breadwinner, monthly payments are provided to dependents. The formula by which this material assistance is calculated is confirmed by pension federal laws.
• Art. 264 of the Civil Procedure Code of the Russian Federation describes the legal fact that a person is a dependent and all operations with his rights.
• The fact that a person is legally a dependent is confirmed by authorized bodies: district court, local administration, etc. The only exceptions to this confirmation are children under 18 years of age—evidence of being a minor should not be provided.
• The Civil Procedure Code necessarily requires an indication of the purpose for which recognition of a person as a dependent is required. There are three most popular ones here: Receiving an inheritance.
• Assignment of benefits in connection with the death of the owner.
• Compensation for the death of the breadwinner.

Establishing the fact of being a dependent

This means that the plaintiff must, before going to court, try to obtain the status of a dependent and the due share in the inheritance by mutual voluntary agreement with the heirs of the main priority, which is called upon to receive the property of the deceased. If all legal heirs agree with the dependent’s share, the heirs turn to a notary and receive rights to the inheritance.

Dependents' rights to inheritance

Dependents of the deceased can claim his property simultaneously with the main line of heirs accepting the inheritance. Regardless of the testamentary will, such dependents receive the right to half of the property that would be due to them upon receipt of the inherited property by law.

, Federal Law “On Labor Pensions in the Russian Federation” A dependent is a disabled person, most often having a disability group. Temporarily unemployed able-bodied people are not dependents. Article 264 of the Code of Civil Procedure of the Russian Federation directly provides for one of the types of legal facts - the fact of being a dependent, on which the emergence, change, termination of personal or property rights of citizens depends. The mere fact of being a dependent is not subject to any registration.

Who is a dependent? What is legal dependency?

For minor children who are dependent on both disabled parents (or if a single parent is disabled), a number of support measures are provided.
Minor citizens of the Russian Federation in such families are provided with financial compensation for utility costs in the amount of 50%. The calculation is made based on the amount of consumed resources, calculated on the basis of readings recorded by devices, within the framework of standards for the level of consumption of relevant services. In the absence of devices for recording payments for utility services, consumption standards are used as a basis. We recommend reading: What does the technical passport of the house look like?

Powers of persons

To assign a pension to children and in other situations, it is necessary to understand what dependency is. It is considered as a situation where a citizen lives at the expense of the breadwinner due to the lack of ability to support himself on his own. The reasons for this may be different, for example, age or recognition as incapacitated. Dependents of a deceased person fall into a couple of categories.

These include:

• persons who are relatives of the deceased;
• citizens who do not have blood ties with the testator.

It is possible for relatives to accept the inheritance if the receipt of maintenance from the deceased is confirmed. It does not matter whether the heir lived with the deceased or not. Other dependents of the deceased breadwinner, in order to form inheritance rights, confirm that the person lived in the same premises with the deceased. Article 1148 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation provides that an application for obtaining rights to an inherited estate can be submitted within six months from the day the person died.

IMPORTANT !!! In addition, it is important that the citizen uses the deceased’s funds for living during the one-year period. The period preceding the death of a person is taken into account.

The category in question counts on the estate, as well as other legal successors. This applies to citizens who receive rights to the property of the deceased. Judicial practice provides that such citizens will receive the second part of the share, which would have passed to them in the event of application of legal provisions. In such a situation, it does not matter what the deceased indicated in the will.

For a better understanding, it is necessary to consider a specific example. The late citizen R. left two sons. In addition, during his lifetime, R. lived with a person who was not his relative. He has been a dependent of R. recently (the period is 3 years). If R. does not make a will, then both sons and the specified person can count on a third of the property. If a will is formed, then everything is divided between the relatives.

A dependent can appeal to authorized authorities to challenge the size of his sons’ share. Then he will be allocated a sixth of the deceased's belongings. The rest will go in equal parts to the sons.

Dependents - who are they?

Let's take a closer look at where this word came from. The very concept of a dependent is derived from the word “dependency,” which has Old Slavonic roots. A derivative word is also the Slavic verb “izhditi”, the translation of which means “to live”. If you pay attention to explanatory dictionaries, you can understand that a dependent is a person who is dependent. And dependency itself is interpreted as the desire or need to live at the expense of others. In common parlance, the synonym for dependent is “freeloader.” Over time, the word began to acquire a negative meaning, so its use in speech began to be reduced to a minimum.

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Who are considered dependents

Based on the existing criteria for classification as dependents, the following categories of such persons can be distinguished:

1. Spouses. In this case, we are not talking about any spouse, but only about the one who has reached retirement age or has a disability. If the wife of her own free will decided to become a housewife, then she is not a dependent.
2. Children. Dependents include both minor children and children under the age of 23 who are studying full-time at a university. In the latter case, the child should not work under an employment contract on a full-time basis. Adoptive parents and adopted children enjoy equal rights as parents and children. But it happens that children lose their status as incompetent before they reach adulthood. These are, for example, situations when a child enters into a legal marriage, receives the status of an entrepreneur, or officially gets a job.
3. Parents, grandparents. The person's dependents are parents of retirement age who are disabled. Retired grandparents can be recognized as dependents in the absence of persons who are obliged to support them.
4. Brothers, sisters and grandchildren (minors, adults, studying at a university under the age of 23) in the absence of able-bodied parents. If the parents are able to work, then they should provide for the brothers and sisters.
5. Persons who are supported by virtue of a signed lifelong annuity agreement. Such persons become dependents in relation to an able-bodied relative: father, mother, spouse, brother, sister, grandson, son or daughter.
6. They also distinguish between dependents in relation to the state. These are, for example, orphans and pensioners, students with financial support from the state and disabled citizens who are fully supported by the state.

Who is considered a dependent by law in Russia, are they children and parents according to the Civil Code?

Based on references to dependency in the legislative acts of the Russian Federation, it can be determined that a dependent is a citizen who does not have the ability to provide for himself financially, and therefore receives material support from another person or the state. Able-bodied unemployed citizens cannot be dependent.

It should be borne in mind that if a citizen decides to adopt a child, then after the death of the adoptive parent, the adopted child has the right to inheritance on an equal basis with blood relatives. He will be dependent on his parents until he is 18 years old. Dependency is also mentioned in Art. 264 - it establishes the procedure for establishing dependency through the court.

Who is considered a dependent

A dependent is necessarily a disabled person.
And these are considered to be children under the age of majority, pensioners and disabled people. However, this is not all. Each of these groups has its own nuances. For example, a child continues to be a dependent if he is enrolled in full-time education, taking into account the fact that all this happens before the age of 23, and the education is not additional education courses. Pensioners - if their pension is less than the minimum subsistence level established by law. An interesting point concerns spouses. The question is often discussed on forums: is a wife a dependent? All lawyers will answer you: “YES! Is” But only if she is raising a child. Paid maternity leave does not count. A dependent husband is also possible. Of course, this is the case if he is involved in the development of the child, and the wife provides money for the family. Dependents are a kind of counterbalance to the “working population of the country.” You can read more about the rights of dependents in the labor and family codes, but it is better, if questions arise, to consult with a professional lawyer. Breadwinners in such families are provided with certain benefits.

How can a pensioner apply for additional payment for a dependent?

Registration of additional payment to the pension is carried out in accordance with the established procedure, by contacting the applicant to the Pension Fund of the Russian Federation at the place of registration.

Required documents

Before contacting the Pension Fund for additional payment, the pensioner should prepare the necessary documents. The basic package of documents includes:

1. Identification. Citizens of the Russian Federation present to the Pension Fund a passport, foreign nationals and stateless persons - a document confirming their current registration.
2. Statement. The document contains basic information about the applicant (full name, passport details, residential address, etc.), as well as the grounds giving the right to receive additional payment (presence of a minor child, living with a disabled spouse, etc.). The application can be drawn up in free form, but it is recommended to use the form posted on the Pension Fund website. You can also obtain a document form to fill out at the Pension Fund branch.
3. Certificate of assignment of SNILS. Based on SNILS, a PFR specialist checks the fact that an age/disability insurance pension has been accrued to the applicant, and, therefore, confirms his right to receive an additional payment.

One of the main documents required to assign an additional payment is confirmation of the applicant’s right to such an additional payment. Since the circumstances under which a citizen applies to the Pension Fund may be different, the contents of the full package of papers depend on the specific conditions for processing the additional payment.

In different cases, the following documents can serve as confirmation of the presence of a dependent, and, accordingly, the pensioner’s right to additional payment:

1. Birth certificate, adoption of a child, guardianship agreement, guardianship agreement, if the applicant applies for an additional payment for a child under 18 years of age.
2. When submitting documents for additional payment for a disabled spouse - a marriage certificate, a certificate from the Pension Fund of the Russian Federation stating that the spouse has been assigned a pension below the minimum monthly wage.
3. The applicant's birth certificate, as well as a certificate of the amount of pension accrued to the parent, are the grounds for assigning additional payment for dependent parents.

Procedure for applying for a pension supplement

The assignment of additional payment to the pension for a dependent is carried out within the framework of the following algorithm:

Stage-1. Transfer of documents to the Pension Fund.

After preparing the required papers, the pensioner should contact the territorial Pension Fund at the place of registration. Documents can be submitted in person or through a representative, sent through a Russian Post office, or you can fill out an electronic application on the Pension Fund website.

Stage-2. Processing of documents in the Pension Fund of Russia.

Upon receipt of documents, PFP specialists accept them for verification for up to 10 working days. The date of acceptance of documents for work is determined on the basis of the application.

Stage-3. Notification of additional payment.

Upon expiration of the established period, the Pension Fund sends a notification to the pensioner:

• on the assignment of payments if all documents are completed correctly;
• about a request for revision of documents if some of the papers are filled out incorrectly or the documents are provided incompletely.

In the latter case, the pensioner is given a period of 3 months to finalize the papers and re-apply to the Pension Fund.

Payment period

The period for assigning additional payment depends on the specific situation:

1. Additional payment to pensioners who support a spouse (parent) recognized as disabled due to old age is assigned for life.
2. Citizens receiving additional payment for a disabled dependent have the right to payment until the relative's disability is removed.
3. Additional payment for children is assigned until they turn 18 years old. This period can be extended provided that the child is studying full-time at a university, technical school, vocational school, or other educational institution (for 23 years old with supporting documents).

USEFUL INFORMATION: Is income tax calculated on alimony payments?

A complete termination of payment of the previously assigned additional payment amount is possible if it is established that the applicant provided false and falsified information. The basis for canceling the payment is the corresponding court decision.