PENSION INSURANCE REFORM IN CROATIA AT THE PRESENT STAGE

The article analyzes the pension insurance reform in Croatia, which marked the beginning of a three-level pension system formation. The first level includes old-age pensions, disability pension and survivors pension as part of the compulsory pension insurance system. The second level includes pensions on the basis of the compulsory pension insurance with a saving element. The third level is based on the voluntary pension insurance system. The author reveals the conditions for granting non-contributory pensions, non-contributory pensions with a saving element as well as conditions for granting funded pensions. The article analyses the new formula for calculation of non-contributory (funded) pensions, which was initially introduced as part of the Pension Insurance Law in 1998. The article displays fundamental changes in the pension insurance system, which led to the formation of compulsory pension funds and non-governmental pension funds. Special attention is paid to the formation in compulsory pension funds of capitalized savings of the insured parties as part of the compulsory pension insurance and to the procedures for payment of funded pensions with a saving element. The article reveals the reasons for adopting in 2013 and 2014 of pension laws, the implementation of which will determine the improvement of the pension insurance system in Croatia. The article reviews the conditions for the formation of compulsory and voluntary pension funds. Special attention is paid to the participation of the insured parties aged up to 40 years in compulsory pension funds, which are divided into three categories depending on the extent of risk management during investing of the insured parties’ savings. Besides general scientific methods (analysis and synthesis), the author also applied in the article private law research techniques, in particular, formal logical, theoretical, comprehensive legal, historical and comparative law methods. Scientific novelty of the work is in its integrative and comprehensive approach to the analysis of the Croatian pension system development, which is formed on the basis of a three-level system of pension insurance. The analysis of the pension insurance norms and law enforcement practice in the modern period is of great scientific and practical importance. The research findings should contribute to the development of proposals on the creation in the Russian Federation of a pension system, which is adequate to the country’s modern social-economic development and which complies with the international and legal standards of social security and foreign states’ experience.