The procedure for receiving a subsidy for utility bills

To ease the financial burden of citizens in maintaining housing, the legislator provided subsidies to the population to pay for utilities. However, such subsidies are provided only to certain categories of citizens who must confirm the grounds for the subsidy.

What documents are needed to receive assistance?

Decree No. 354 on public services implies the provision of subsidies for housing and communal services payments to citizens who are unable to bear the burden due to low income or who are forced for other reasons to ask for this assistance in the form of a subsidy.

To apply for assistance in paying for housing and communal services, you will need to provide a package of documents, on the basis of which the applicant’s eligibility will be established. These include:

• applicant's passport;
• passports or other identification documents of the remaining family members living in the same living space (a birth certificate is provided for children);
• certificate of ownership or other documents confirming the right to reside in the apartment;
• a copy of the work book certified by the chief accountant of the enterprise;
• personal account statements confirming the absence of debt on utility bills;
• receipts confirming payment for resource supply services and the absence of debt on them (at least for the last six months);
• certificate of family composition;
• an extract from the house registration book about the number of registered persons in the apartment;
• certificates confirming the level of wages (for each able-bodied family member);
• SNILS;
• the applicant’s current account (where the subsidy for utilities will be transferred monthly);
• documents confirming the relationship between cohabitants (including a marriage certificate);
• a certificate from the BTI confirming the size of the area (if there is no cadastral plan of housing);
• certificate of registration with the employment center (for unemployed citizens).

The list of documents for receiving a subsidy for utility services may vary slightly depending on the applicant’s region of residence.

How to properly apply for a subsidy for utilities?

The Law on subsidies for housing subsidies 2018 establishes a clear procedure for obtaining a housing subsidy, which is the following algorithm:

1. Contact the authorized body to clarify the package of documents for the exercise of authority.
2. Collection of papers.
3. Repeated appearance to draw up an application for a subsidy, attaching the prepared documents.
4. Registration of the application and waiting for its consideration (no more than 10 working days from the date of application).
5. Receive a response and start the subsidy.

It is important to understand that the subsidy is provided in the form of compensation for the amount of money that was spent on utility services over the past month, that is, payments are made for the previous reporting period by transferring part of the amount to the applicant’s current account.

Who is eligible for the subsidy?

Assistance to pay for housing and utilities is provided only to a certain category of citizens, most often these are vulnerable or low-income segments of the population, in particular:

• pensioners;
• large families;
• disabled people (provided that their benefit amount is insufficient to pay the utility burden and ensure decent living);
• single mothers;
• other, low-income citizens.

When the authorized body makes a decision on assigning a subsidy for housing and utilities, the following is assessed:

1. Completeness of the submitted package of documents for receiving a subsidy.
2. Type of entitlement to housing (ground of residence).
3. Dimensions of living space.
4. Calculation standards in force in a specific region (in Moscow and the Moscow region the highest indicator of the area norm per person is established).
5. Monthly amount of costs for housing services (depending on which the subsidy amount will be calculated).
6. Average monthly income of each family member.
7. Presence of current debt on housing services (there should not be such).
8. Has a previously existing subsidy expired?

Calculation of subsidies for payment of utility bills (example)

To understand what procedure is used to assign a subsidy, it is necessary to consider the formula by which the calculation is made.

The established minimum for housing and communal services is the total family income * 22%

The algorithm described above explains that each specific subsidy amount is determined based on the standards established in the region of residence, including:

• minimum wage;
• standard area per person.

Today, the law establishes a rule according to which citizens who pay more than 22% of their earnings for housing services have the right to receive subsidies to pay for it.

For example: if there are 4 people living in a family, whose total earnings are 30 thousand rubles per month, and the established minimum payment for housing and communal services in their region of residence is 8 thousand rubles, then the following expression is obtained:

8 thousand rubles – 30 thousand rubles * 0.22 = 1.4 (the amount received is the amount of the monthly subsidy).

You can apply for a subsidy to pay for housing department services only by application and with the obligatory provision of a package of documents confirming your status as low-income or needy.