Thousands in Israel Lose Russian Pensions

Tens of thousands of Russians living in Israel are unable to receive Russian pensions directly, according to Izvestia.

Consensus

• Thousands of Russian-speaking pensioners in Israel cannot receive Russian pensions.
• The issue began after sanctions were imposed on Russian banks in 2022.
• Russian and Israeli authorities have held multiple rounds of consultations.
• Transfers have been disrupted due to the inability of Israeli banks to work with Russian financial institutions.
• The problem affects nearly 40,000 people.
• Russia and Israel are discussing alternative payment methods, including switching from dollar-based transfers.
• Work on finding a solution continues.

Points of divergence

• The Social Fund of Russia faced technical difficulties in making overseas pension payments. — vesti
• Pension transfers stopped in early 2025 due to the breakdown of the chain involving Gazprombank and its correspondent bank in Luxembourg. — tg_moscowtimes_ru
• There were 52,500 Russian pension recipients in Israel, with 17,600 receiving payments under a bilateral agreement on social security cooperation. — tg_moscowtimes_ru
• The Russian embassy in Israel reported that alternative arrangements with Israel have not yet been agreed upon. — vesti

Coverage (2 sources)

• Thousands of Russian-speaking Israelis cannot receive their pension from Russia — Вести
• Tens of thousands of Russians in Israel left without Russian pensions — The Moscow Times

Key entities

• Russia
• Israel
• Moscow
• Izvestiya
• USA
• EU
• Tel Aviv
• Social Fund
• Evgeniya Sovy