Prishtina, July 9, 2025 – The Constitutional Court of Kosovo has ruled that the amended Law on State-Financed Pension Schemes does not violate the country’s Constitution, following a request for constitutional review filed by the Ombudsperson.
The Ombudsperson had raised three main concerns: whether the law’s content results in inequality and discrimination; whether it unjustly removes the requirement of 15 years of work experience for those dismissed due to violent measures; and whether the newly introduced “partial contributory age-based pension” constitutes a new pension scheme.
The contested amendments allow citizens who, due to forced dismissals prior to January 1, 1999, did not accumulate the required 15 years of work experience, to be eligible for the partial contributory age-based pension scheme.
In its decision, the Court found that the law does not constitute discrimination and is in full harmony with constitutional principles.
“The Court assessed that the provision of pensions through the partial contributory age-based scheme, as outlined in Article 4 of the contested law, acknowledges the work experience and pension contributions of all workers forcibly dismissed between 1989 and 1999, without discrimination. This ensures equal treatment and avoids any form of inequality regarding the right to contributory age-based pensions,” the Court stated.
The ruling emphasized that the legislative solution strikes a fair balance between the legitimate goal of protecting public interest and the fundamental rights and freedoms of individuals.
