Dear Editor,
The old-age pension requirement needs to be revisited with a view to enable Guyanese who reside overseas and have contributed to this nation through years of hard work and tax payments. These individuals helped in the nation’s development, yet they are denied access to a pension or even a prorated amount once they reach the age of 65. The current requirement for these Guyanese is that they must be living in Guyana for two consecutive years to be eligible for the pension.
Let’s consider two scenarios:
1. A Guyanese migrated at the age of 18, remigrated to Guyana at 63, and, at 65, can receive a full old-age pension without having paid any taxes during the years spent abroad. Additionally, they will be eligible for all cash grants.
2. Another Guyanese migrated at 63, paid taxes for 45 years, but will not receive a pension upon reaching 65 due to the two-year consecutive residency requirement. They may or may not be eligible for any cash grants.
In Scenario 1, the individual did not contribute to the nation’s development or pay taxes yet they are entitled to a full pension and cash grants and will receive a foreign pension from the country they have lived in for most of their life. In Scenario 2, the individual contributed 45 years (assuming they started working at 18), paid taxes, and helped developed the nation, but they will receive no pension and cash grant from Guyana and no benefits from the country they migrated to. How can this be addressed? Here’s my perspective. The government could adopt a system similar to Canada’s Old Age Security (OAS). Under this system, Old Age Security is based on the number of years a person has lived in Canada after the age of 18. To receive a full OAS pension at 65, you must have lived in Canada for at least 40 years after turning 18. Those who have lived in Canada for fewer than 40 years can receive a partial pension.
For example, if you’ve lived in Canada for 20 years after turning 18, you would receive half of the full pension.
If the Government cannot mirror the Canadian system, then they can work out something. Like in order to receive a full or prorated pension, Guyanese would have to have lived in Guyana for 43 years or 25 years after turning 18.
Let’s apply this idea to Guyana using 40 years residency after turning 18 (58 years living in Guyana) to receive the full pension. Suppose the full pension is $40,000 per month. If a person has lived in Guyana for 43 years.
That will be 25 years after turning 18. Then they can receive 25/40 or 62.5% of the full pension which is equivalent to $25,000. While I am not in favour of cash grants, this could be a fair way for overseas-based Guyanese to receive a prorated pension now that we have the windfall of the oil money. Some may argue that Guyanese living abroad receive foreign currency pensions and do not need a pension from Guyana. However, consider the hundreds of thousands of Guyanese who migrated to countries other than the US or Canada. In fact, under the Canadian or US system, individuals must have lived in those countries for at least 10 years to qualify for any benefits.
Yours sincerely,
(Name and address supplied)
