According to the decision of the Governing Board of the Kosovo Pension Savings Trust (KPST), taken in accordance with paragraph 9.4 of Law No. 04/L-101 on Kosovo Pension Funds, the balance of pension savings of contributors reaching the age of 63 is transferred from the Standard Portfolio to the Conservative Portfolio.

The transfer to this Portfolio is aimed at protecting contributors who are close to retirement. The Conservative Portfolio will have most of the funds invested in the Treasury Bonds of the Republic of Kosovo, which are low-risk instruments offering a solid return on investment without significant fluctuations and with a positive return. Obviously, since the investments for this age group are mostly in Kosovo, they are protected from fluctuations in international financial markets.

On technical terms, the price in the Standard Portfolio on 16.02.2022 (transfer day) was EUR 1.674594 per unit. The starting price of the Conservative Portfolio is set at EUR 2.00 per unit in order to be easily distinguishable from the Standard Portfolio price. The value of savings in the Standard Portfolio on 16.02.2022 is used to purchase units in the Conservative Portfolio.

It should be noted that as a result of this transfer the value of contributors’ savings has not changed. However, contributors’ can follow the subsequent performance of the Conservative Portfolio through the eTrusti portal or the KPST website.

According to law no. 04 / L-101 (supplemented and amended by law No. 05 / L-116), the withdrawal of pension savings can be done only:

1. When you reach the retirement age, currently set at 65,
2. When you become a beneficiary of the disability pension,
3. When you inherit the savings from the deceased contributors,
4. If you were a foreign citizen with a temporary residence in Kosovo from the moment you were paying pension contributions.

If you’re 65 years old and have a balance of up to €3,000, you will withdraw savings with a lumpsum payment!

If you’re 65 years old and have a balance over €3,000, you will withdraw savings in phases!

In phased withdrawals, the payment is arranged in two proportion types:

20%/80% – where 20% is an upfront payment and the 80% is paid out on monthly basis, or

0%/100% where the whole balance is withdrawn in phases.

In phased withdrawal the payments are made on monthly basis, with a minimum of €200 and a maximum of 1% of the balance upon application approval date. Monthly payments are reviewed on regular basis. They are proposed by the KPST Governing Board and approved by the Central Bank of Kosovo (CBK).

In order for pension contributions to be allocated to the account, the following steps must be completed:

1. The employer must declare payroll to EDI / TAK,
2. In that list you must be present and correctly identified,
3. Payment according to the list made the employer.

If these steps are completed according to the rules, information processing takes 3 to 5 working days. This is because the information chain includes several institutions (bank, CBK, TAK and Trust).Srpski

It usually happens that the employer has not made the declaration or payment, has erred in payment, has been late with payment or the bank has not forwarded the funds as required. It may also be that the employer is in agreement on late payments; in this case the employer must make a separate request for transfer of pension contributions from TAK to the Trust. Therefore, seek detailed clarification from your employer / accountant about the contributions in question.

If the employer is too late with payments, you can call TAK (toll free number: 0800-80-800) to report non-compliance by your employer. TAK has the legal responsibility for mandatory collection of pension contributions.

Your balance changes due to two reasons: (i) your account has received new contributions and/or (ii) unit price has changed for the given date. The unit price presents the daily investment result. Naturally, investments get a positive or a negative return every day. You should not worry about daily fluctuations. KPPST is obliged to make prudent and diversified investments. In longer terms, and by applying such principles, as proven historically, the return will be positive.

A unit is an industry standard in pension funds and, in the KPST, it is used as an accounting measurement unit to calculate each contributor’s participation in the pooled fund. This approach is common in pension funds worldwide: each contribution made by an individual is used to purchase a certain number of units in the respective fund, representing a share of ownership in that fund’s assets.

A unit is similar to a “share” in the capital market, as it helps measure the value of the funds and reflect investment performance through the increase or decrease in the value of units. This increase or decrease depends on the performance of KPST’s investment portfolio, specifically the fund in which the individual contributes – whether Standard, Intermediate, or Conservative – each with a different level of risk and investment strategy.

However, unlike a share, a unit cannot be freely sold or traded on the market. Contributors are owners of their units, but they can only be withdrawn in legally defined cases – such as retirement, disability, or death. This gives the unit a limited and dedicated function solely for pension purposes, ensuring that the fund serves its long-term goal of financial security in old age.

You can view your account through internet, by signing up for an online account.

You can look at your account in the physical account statement, which:

• Once a year, is mailed to contributors, or
• Any time, by requiring on from in-person query at KPST or TAK regional offices.

We’re sorry but savings cannot be used for other purposes no matter how urgent they are. The health of Kosovo’s citizens is a responsibility of respective authorities. KPST is not a medical insurance fund; its mandate is limited only to the provision of pensions.

We’re sorry but savings cannot be used for other purposes no matter how urgent they are. Social welfare of Kosovo’s citizens is a responsibility of respective authorities. Savings pensions, though a part of the social welfare concept, is insufficient to alleviate social hardships and thus must be provided when due, upon retirement, when it’s needed more than when you are younger.

You can withdraw your savings only for the period when your disability pension is valid; of course if during that period you have enough savings.

Yes, the balance will be inherited by your spouse, as per the Pension Funds Law.

In absence of your spouse, the Law on Inheritance shall apply.

Pension contributions are withheld and paid by the employers, whose employees are Kosovo citizens or permanent residents, as defined by the Law on Foreigners. Foreign citizens and temporary residents are not allowed to be paid pension contributions.

Pension contributions can be paid only if you have an economic activity. If you perform an economic activity in the capacity of a natural person with any contract type (temporary, permanent, specific service, etc) your employer is obliged to withold and py pension contributions on your behalf.

If you are self-employed (a business owner) you must pay pension contributions on quarterly basis along with personal income tax.

No. Since these savings are collected thorugh a mandatory payment scheme, they, too, are withdrawn according to legal criteria. Although individual savings, their destination is limited only to financing your pension.

Upon receipt, contributions are invested in financial markets through asset managers – companies that manage savings from similar funds.

Yes, a considerable part of pension assets are invested in Kosovo, mostly as loans to the Kosovo Government, and a smaller part as deposits in Kosovo Commercial Banks.

KPST, though, must always make sure to maintain an adequate spread of investments in order to minimize the investment risk.

Businesses can be helped if Kosovo had a financial market. Participation in financial markets is an opportunity but also a challenge to businesses. While businesses may have better access to debt and equity, they would have to present fair, accurate and comprehensive business information in order for the investors to have as much information as possible to decide whether to finance a business. Do not forget, KPST assets have precisely-defined owners, to the last cents. Businesses should be supported but the contributors’ savings should be safe.

As is known, when we invest in something we do not exactly know whether we will have a positive return from that investment. However, investments are made by first collecting information as much as possible in order to minimize risk. Information helps not only to specify the amount to be invested but also where and when to invest. This logic is used by pension funds, too. Through financial market, as a place where information is available, pension funds decide on how much, where and when to invest.

Investments are not made only in one category, at one point of time, and at one place. Financial markets precisely do offer the possibility of distributing investments into different categories, time and places. Investments should not be understood as a single transaction but rather as transactions going on for a longer interval. The KPST objective, and in fact of all pension funds, is to strike a balance between the risk and return of investments.

In Kosovo, there are two main pension categories, pensions provided by the state and mandatory pensions savings made during the working age.

1. Pensions provided by the state are administered by the Kosovo Pension Administration at the Ministry of Labor and Social Welfare. These pensions are financed by state’s budget (taxes, customs, etc.)
2. Pension savings are administered by the Kosovo Pension Savings Trust (KPST). Pension savings have started from August 2002 for the employees in the public sector and a year later for the rest of employees and self-employed.

In the following you will see FAQ related only to pension savings in KPST.