Wages and pensions in Uzbekistan to rise above inflation

Wages, pensions, and social benefits in Uzbekistan will be increased annually at a rate exceeding inflation, according to the fiscal strategy for 2026–2028 released by the Ministry of Economy and Finance.

The document outlines a plan to raise the incomes of employees in budget-funded organizations above the annual inflation rate by 2028. These measures aim to “raise living standards, ensure real income growth, and strengthen social protection.”

This marks a shift from the previous fiscal strategy for 2025–2027, which only guaranteed indexation of social payments in line with inflation.

In addition, the Ministry of Economy and Finance plans to tighten the rules for granting social tax benefits to ensure the sustainability of the pension fund. Notably, until 2028, a reduced social tax rate of 1 percent will apply to the service sector—but only for employees under the age of 30 whose monthly salary exceeds 3 million soums.

According to official projections, transfers from the state budget to the Pension Fund are expected to surpass 20 trillion soums in 2025 and increase to 26 trillion soums by 2028—nearly doubling compared to 2023.

Government estimates show that each 1 percent increase in the salaries of public sector employees will cost the state budget 1.67 trillion soums in 2026, while a similar increase in pensions will cost 861 billion soums. If the number of families receiving social benefits grows by 10 percent, additional budget expenditures are expected to reach 1.6 trillion soums.

For context, the average monthly salary in Uzbekistan during the first half of 2025 was 5 million 982 thousand soums—an increase of more than 17 percent compared to the same period last year.