--- title: "UN and Red Cross aid is not considered income: when payments do not affect your pension" description: "Attorney Elena Voronkova explained that charitable aid from the UN and international funds is not included in annual income and does not affect social benefits, provided two conditions are met." date: 2026-08-26T03:32:04.000Z lang: en url: https://xab.info/en/posts/un-red-cross-aid-not-income-when-payments-dont-affect-pension tags: [ukraine, pension, un-aid, charitable-donations, tax-code, social-benefits] publisher: "XAB.info" --- # UN and Red Cross aid is not considered income: when payments do not affect your pension ![Senior woman reviewing pension and benefit documents, contemplating how UN and Red Cross aid affects her income](https://xab.info/media/2026/08/26/pomoshch-oon-i-pensiya-kogda-vyplaty-ne-uchityvayut/pomoshch-oon-i-pensiya-kogda-vyplaty-ne-uchityvayut-1.webp) ## 🎯 Key Points - Charitable aid from international funds is not considered income under the Tax Code of Ukraine. - The exclusion applies only when both statuses are confirmed — that of the provider and that of the recipient of the aid. - Certain types of benefits require the absence of payments from other international funds, so all factors are taken into account. Throughout the war, thousands of Ukrainians have received financial support from the UN, the International Committee of the Red Cross, and other international charitable foundations. With the start of the full-scale invasion, such organizations became one of the key sources of assistance, and recipients naturally asked: are these funds counted as income, and could they become grounds for reducing a pension or other social benefits? In response to RBC-Ukraine, Elena Voronkova, an attorney at Ivana Khomych Law Firm, provided an answer. ### Why the question has arisen now According to the lawyer, since the start of the full-scale invasion, many international charitable organizations have been providing and continue to provide charitable assistance. At the same time, Ukraine has a number of social benefits whose amount or eligibility depends on a person's income. This is why, in practice, the question arose of whether payments from charitable organizations should affect a person's right to receive such social benefits. The answer depends directly on how the law classifies these funds. ### Charitable aid is not income The key conclusion drawn by Elena Voronkova is that charitable aid, in itself, is not considered income. The lawyer reminded that amendments were made to the Tax Code of Ukraine clearly regulating that charitable aid received by a certain category of persons is not included in the taxpayer's annual income. Thus, at the level of tax legislation, these payments have been removed from the concept of "income," which eliminates most of the risks for recipients of social benefits. ### Two conditions under which the rule applies At the same time, the attorney emphasized that the rule excluding aid from income does not apply automatically, but only when two conditions are met. This refers to the confirmation of both statuses — that of the provider and that of the recipient of the aid. As Voronkova noted, if both statuses are confirmed, the income must not be taken into account either for the grant of benefits or for the calculation of payments. In other words, for the protection to work, it is important that both the donor organization and the recipient themselves are properly documented within the framework of charitable aid. ### An important nuance: benefits tied to the absence of other payments The lawyer also pointed to a separate group of benefits, the conditions for receiving which explicitly state that they can only be obtained if the person is not receiving payments from other international funds. This means that even if the aid is not considered income in the tax sense, it may be taken into account when deciding on the grant of a specific type of benefit. Therefore, according to Voronkova, in making a decision on which benefit a person is entitled to, all factors must be considered, not only the tax classification of the funds. ### Related topics: pension and work record abroad Against the backdrop of the pension discussion, lawyers also remind about other important mechanisms. For example, work experience in Poland can be taken into account for the right to a pension in Ukraine if the Ukrainian work record is insufficient for this; this requires the PL-UA 6 form, which is issued by the Polish ZUS. At the same time, the amount of the pension itself is calculated exclusively under Ukrainian legislation — only the work record acquired on the territory of Ukraine is taken into account. It is separately noted that certain categories of women have the right to early retirement at age 50, but this requires meeting several criteria. ## 🔍 Fact-Check Verification - [Will a pension be cut because of UN aid: lawyer names key conditions](https://www.rbc.ua/ukr/news/chi-urizhut-pensiyu-cherez-dopomogu-vid-oon-1787658015.html) - Первичный источник: цитаты адвоката Елены Воронковой о невключении благотворительной помощи в доход и двух условиях (статусы поставщика и получателя). - [Charitable aid from the UN and pension: when payments are not counted](https://novosti.ua/society/blagotvoritelnaya-pomoshch-i-pensiya-kogda-vyplaty-ne-urezayut) - Подтверждает юридическую квалификацию помощи и условия ее невключения в доход. - [Military personnel are entitled to a pension increase: how much payments will grow in 2026](https://www.unian.net/society/pensiya-ubd-kakie-est-doplaty-voennym-v-2026-godu-13317831.html) - Тема (доплаты к пенсии военным в 2026 г.) не связана с благотворительной помощью; в качестве основания для статьи не использована. ## ❓ FAQ ### Q: Is aid from the UN or the Red Cross considered income? **A:** No. Under the amendments to the Tax Code of Ukraine, charitable aid received by a certain category of persons is not included in the taxpayer's annual income. ### Q: Under what conditions is aid not taken into account for benefits and payments? **A:** The rule applies when both statuses are confirmed — that of the provider and that of the recipient of the aid. In that case, these funds are not taken into account for either benefits or payments. ### Q: Can aid from international funds affect a specific benefit? **A:** Yes. There are types of benefits that are only granted if the person is not receiving payments from other international funds, so all factors are taken into account when making the grant decision.