The government will oversee the spending of maternity capital assets more closely. Prime Minister Vladimir Putin noted that it is inadmissible to misuse maternity capital. The Healthcare and Social Development Ministry and the Pension Fund have drafted proposals to deal with confidence tricksters.
In the few years since its inception, maternity capital has become a highly popular measure to facilitate social support for young families.
Last year alone, the Pension Fund spent 97 billion roubles on such payments. Another 120 billion roubles will be allocated this year. Confidence tricksters also realise that such sums are quite impressive.
Some swindlers tried to hide their convictions and parent-rights deprivation after giving birth because this automatically deprives them of maternity capital.
Shady characters in some cities offer to cash maternity capital in three days. Consequently, mothers can receive over 300,000 roubles in cash at a time when maternity capital is disbursed only on a non-cash basis.
Some real estate agencies have signed fictitious mortgage contracts with young mothers. The Pension Fund's regional divisions checked the documents, registered apartment-purchase contracts, and transferred the money to the real estate agencies' accounts. The agencies then cashed the money and split it with mothers who, in return, wrote gift grants and deeds for their new apartments.
Such machinations with maternity capital have not gone unnoticed.
On Monday, Vladimir Putin addressed an intercom conference on the results of the Pension Fund's performance last year and noted the need to eliminate all loopholes for confidence tricksters in this sphere.
"The relevant proposals have been drafted, they are presently being examined at the Healthcare and Social Development Ministry, and they will soon be submitted to the government," Pension Fund Chairman Anton Drozdov said.
Healthcare and Social Development Minister Tatyana Golikova also promised to submit her proposals to the government in the near future.
"Perhaps, we should not even amend legislation, but rather instruct local law-enforcement agencies to thwart violations together with Pension Fund divisions," she said. "But this is rather difficult."
Anastasia Savinykh