Social card system to revolutionize welfare and transport in Uzbekistan

President Shavkat Mirziyoyev announced the introduction of a unified social card to streamline access to social services and benefits. This announcement was made today, December 13, during a videoconference meeting focused on social protection efforts and priorities for 2025.

Currently, citizens require over 10 documents, including birth certificates, disability certificates, pension documents, student ID cards, and bank cards, to access 65 types of social services and assistance. President Mirziyoyev emphasized the need to end this inconvenience by consolidating these functions into a single social card.

The new social card will enable free travel on buses and the metro, simplify the process of receiving compensation for electricity, gas, and tuition costs, and serve as a means to access pensions and financial assistance.

The system will initially be tested in Tashkent city and Yangiyul district by July 1, 2025, before being rolled out nationwide by the end of the year.

This initiative aligns with the earlier decision made on February 20, 2024, during another videoconference meeting chaired by President Mirziyoyev, to introduce social cards as the primary method of financing all social assistance in Uzbekistan. The Presidential Decree “On Fundamentally Improving the Procedure for State Social Support of the Population” dated July 18, 2024, outlined that starting from October 1, 2025, pensioners will have the option to receive their pensions for age, disability, or loss of a breadwinner via the social card.

Furthermore, from December 1 of this year, newly assigned social payments, services, and benefits are already being transferred to social cards. This initiative is part of broader efforts to enhance the efficiency and accessibility of state social support measures.