SULAIMANI, Kurdistan Region — The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) requires an additional 50 billion Iraqi dinars to align its pension system with standards of the central government. However, the process is stalled as Iraq demands the pension contributions that have been collected by the KRG before proceeding with pension equalization.
Both the Iraqi federal government and the KRG are committed to enforcing Federal Unified Pension Law No. 9 of 2014, which mandates a uniform pension system across the country, including the Kurdistan Region. A committee has been formed to oversee the process, aiming to equalize KRG pensioners’ salaries with their counterparts in Iraq by September this year, according to Bryar Rashid, Kurdish lawmaker in the Iraqi Parliament.
“The committee was formed on June 22 and has 60 days to proceed with the pension equalization process and address any issues or questions that arise,” said Rashid.
Rashid also called on the KRG and other relevant channels to accelerate their efforts to promptly resolve the longstanding issue of the Kurdistan Region’s pensioners’ salaries.
However, the implementation of the unified pension law has faced challenges, with the Iraqi Government demanding access to the KRG’s retirement fund—where public employees’ contributions are allocated for their retirement—which has not yet been transferred to the federal authorities.
Moein al-Kadhmi, an Iraqi lawmaker from the Finance Committee, stated that implementing the Unified Pension Law and equalizing the KRG’s pension system with that of Iraq hinges on transferring the pension contributions that have been collected by the KRG to the Iraqi treasury.
“The monthly pension contributions from 250,000 Kurdistan Region pensioners have not yet been deposited into the Baghdad treasury. These funds must be transferred before the KRG’s pension system can be aligned with Iraq’s,” said al-Kadhmi.
The Iraqi Federal Unified Pension Law mandates that pension contributions be deducted at a rate of 25% of the employee’s salary, with 10% paid by the employee and 15% covered by the treasury.
On July 3, the KRG approved a proposal to equalize the salaries of its pensioners with those of their counterparts in Iraq, following a 2022 ruling by the Iraqi Federal Court mandating the implementation of the Federal Unified Pension Law.
