The Foundation For The Defense Of The Citizens Against State Abuses (FACIAS) intervenes in support of the 4.9 million pensioners in Romania. FACIAS has sent a preliminary complaint to the Romanian Government and the National Pensions Office (CNPP), requesting the urgent indexation of the reference point, in accordance with the legal obligations ignored by the state.
In the preliminary request sent to the authorities, FACIAS points out that the indexation of pensions is not an act of generosity on the part of the government, but a legal obligation. Under Article 84 paragraph (3) of Law no. 360/2023, we quote: "the value of the reference point shall be increased annually, at the beginning of each year, in January, by the average annual inflation rate, plus 50% of the real increase in the realized average gross wage, definitive indicators, known in the current year for the previous calendar year, communicated by the National Institute of Statistics".
Therefore, the legal text is clear, imperative and unequivocal. Indexation of the pension reference point is not an optional measure. However, the Romanian state has decided to maintain the reference point at 81 lei for the year 2026, freezing pensioners' incomes at the level of 2024.
This austerity measure deprives 4.9 million Romanian pensioners of the legal increase in income and generates significant losses for a large and vulnerable category of citizens, in an economic context marked by high inflation. FACIAS recalls that almost one million senior citizens in Romania survive on a minimum pension of just 1,281 lei per month.
The right to a pension is a right guaranteed by the Romanian Constitution, and indexing it to inflation is the solution by which the state tries to keep a balanced ratio between price increases and the level of pensions in Romania. The state has a legal obligation to ensure that pensions keep pace with prices and economic reality. The authorities' refusal to index the pensions is a direct violation of the state's obligation to take social protection measures in line with real economic changes.
If the institutions concerned do not comply with the request within 30 days, FACIAS will take the Romanian Government and the National Pensions Office to court to demand that they be ordered to increase Romanians' pensions in accordance with the law