Russia Retirement Outlook 2026

1The wealth picture

Russian households hold large savings, mostly in bank deposits and shares. But most personal wealth is in property, it is very unevenly spread, and typical pensioners have modest money.^{4, 6, 15}

• Financial assets, 2026₽188.6Theld by households on 1 April 2026, about US$2.32 trillion (our calculation)^{4, 5}
• After debts₽139.4Tnet financial assets, after ₽49.2 trillion of debts; about US$1.72 trillion (our calculations)^{4, 5}
• Savings rate, Q1 202616.8%of disposable income saved (seasonally adjusted), up from 15.5% a year earlier⁴

Dollar amounts use the Bank of Russia's official rate of 1 April 2026, ₽81.2504 per US$. These are financial assets only: homes and other property are not included, and nothing here is broken down by age.^{4, 5}

• US$ millionaires, 2025447,000adults worth US$1 million or more (UBS model estimate); UBS also counts 122 billionaires⁶
• Wealth inequality0.82UBS wealth Gini (1 means one person owns everything): second of 56 markets, level with the UAE⁶
• Real growth, 2020–25+37%average wealth per adult, in roubles after inflation; second only to South Korea in UBS's sample⁶

UBS figures are model estimates. UBS says its millionaire counts are not comparable with earlier editions, and the growth figure is an average, which the richest influence heavily.⁶

What a typical pensioner household has

A survey of 11,835 people in 6,079 households, March to October 2024. Assets are per household and leave out cash. One sentence of the text says “non-financial”, but the chart it cites is titled financial assets. High-income households are under-represented, and the views are the authors', not the Bank's. A dash means the text does not give that figure.¹⁵

Most wealth is not financial. UBS puts financial assets at 31.2% of gross personal wealth in Russia, and debts at 8.0%. The other 68.8% is non-financial: real assets, which UBS describes as principally housing (our calculation).⁶

No inheritance tax, so no inheritance figures. Inheritances received from individuals are exempt from Russian income tax, with narrow exceptions. So no tax statistics measure what is inherited, and we found no national estimate of transfers over the next ten years (our reading).¹⁶

2Homes and businesses changing hands

Most Russian households own the home they live in. The figures do not show how many older owners sell, and data on business owners near retirement are thin.^{15, 17}

• Own their home72–85%of households, depending on income group, 2024 survey; not broken down by age¹⁵
• Owners who bought it35–53%of home-owners bought their home; the Bank's note does not say how the others got theirs¹⁵
• Mortgage debt, 2026₽22.1Ton 1 April 2026: 44.8% of all household debts (our calculation)⁴

• Older households owe less. Among households that have debts, pensioner-only households have a much lower median debt than families with children, whose median is ₽325,000.¹⁵
• Property holds most of the wealth. With financial assets at 31.2% of gross personal wealth, real assets make up the other 68.8%, and UBS describes them as principally housing (our calculation).⁶
• No downsizing figures. We found no Russian data on home equity or downsizing by age. Rosstat's 2024 housing-conditions survey could not be opened for this report.

Business owners near retirement

The ministry gives no base year, method or definition. We found no Russian estimate of how many firms will need a new owner, or of what they are worth.¹⁷

Owners who sell turn a firm into cash at the age when they decide where to retire. Most of them will stay in Russia: in April 2025, 94% of Russians aged 55 and over said they would not want to move abroad for good.¹⁸

3Ageing: people aged 65 and over, now and in 2035

Russia's population is shrinking while the number of older people grows. The UN and Rosstat, Russia's statistics office, agree closely.^{9, 19}

• Aged 65+, 202525.6M17.8% of the population (UN projection)⁹
• Aged 65+, 203528.6M20.4% of a smaller population (UN projection)⁹
• Aged 80+, 20357.3Mup from 4.8 million in 2025 (UN projection)⁹
• Pensioners, 202640.5Mon 1 January 2026; 32.5 million draw an old-age pension²⁰

Sums, shares and changes are our calculations. Rosstat's forecast was made in 2023, counts people at the start of the year and, as its footnote says, leaves out the Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions. The UN uses its own definition of the country's territory.^{19, 9}

40.5 million pensioners. On 1 January 2026, 40.5 million people drew a pension from the Social Fund, 32.5 million of them an old-age pension. The average old-age pension was ₽27,202.7 a month; Rosstat's table leaves out the same four regions.²⁰ By 1 July 2026 it was ₽27,224: ₽24,929 for working pensioners and ₽27,850 for those not working.⁷

More older people does not mean more movers. As the next section shows, few older Russians say they want to move abroad, and the number of Russian pensions paid abroad has fallen.

4Retirees abroad from Russia

Russia's Social Fund pays pensions to more than 245,000 people abroad, down from more than 308,000 in late 2025. Few older Russians say they want to move abroad, and Russians who want to move most often name the US and Spain, not the DR.^{21, 18}

Undated page figures, not a statistical series. The page still said 308,000 in October and November 2025, so the change came later. It fell about 20% from August 2025 (our calculation), and the fund does not explain why. There is no breakdown by country and no figure for the DR.²¹

Who is leaving, and who wants to

• Few older people want to move. In April 2025, 5% of Russians aged 55 and over said they would like to move abroad for good, and 94% said they would not. Among all adults it was 9%, the lowest Levada Center has recorded.¹⁸
• Where they would go. Those who want to move most often named the US (13%) and Spain (8%), then Italy, South Korea and Germany (5% each). The DR was not on the list.¹⁸
• Departures jumped in 2022. Rosstat registered 668,430 departures from Russia in 2022 and 450,482 in 2023, against 238,020 in 2021, counting all ages and all citizenships. Departures to countries outside the CIS were 84,823 and 59,657.²²
• Türkiye more than tripled. The UN estimates that people born in Russia living in Türkiye rose from 60,671 in 2020 to 193,302 in 2024.¹²
• Where the DR fits. The pension page, the emigration figures and the survey do not name the Dominican Republic. A DR business is reaching a small group that looks far afield.

5The Dominican Republic connection

The link between Russia and the Dominican Republic collapsed in 2022. Visits are now about 1.4% of the 2018 level (our calculation) and lean to Santo Domingo, yet residencies for Russian citizens have grown.^{1, 3}

• Air arrivals, 20253,067trips by people living in Russia; 218,941 in 2018¹
• Russia-born in the DR543UN model estimate, mid-2024; 287 in 1990¹²
• Residencies, 2025427granted to Russian citizens, all types; 313 in 2018³
• Direct flightsNonesince early 2022; in May 2026, no date was set to resume them^{10, 2, 11}

From a large market to a small one. Russia's share of foreign air visitors to the DR fell from 4.48% in 2017 to 0.042% in 2025. January to July 2026 is 8.2% below the same months of 2025 (our calculations).¹

Counted by passport. Airport entries of Russian citizens fell from 216,954 in 2018 to 8,138 in 2025 (−96%, our calculation). January to August 2026 (5,102) is 3.4% below the same months of 2025. Among foreign nationalities, Russia fell from 5th in 2018 to 39th in 2025. These are entries, not people; the passport count is higher than the residence count probably partly because it includes Russians who live outside Russia, in the DR or elsewhere.²³

Two very different counts. Russia's ambassador estimates that about 20,000 Russians visited the DR as tourists (he did not say in which year), against almost 200,000 in 2021, which he called a record year. The official counts for 2025 are far lower: 3,067 air arrivals of people living in Russia and 8,138 airport entries of Russian citizens, and both official series were higher in 2017 or 2018 than in 2021. He said many individual trips now go through other foreign transport hubs.^{24, 1, 23}

In 2025, 427 residencies went to Russian citizens: 10 definitive, 67 permanent and 350 temporary. That puts Russia 15th among all nationalities, with 1.23% of the total. Residencies to all nationalities rose from 19,698 in 2018 to 34,778 in 2025, mainly to Haitian and Venezuelan citizens. The DGM file covers all residency types (work, family, investment, pensioner) and does not say whether renewals are included.³

How many Russians live in the DR? The UN models 543 people born in Russia living in the DR in mid-2024 (223 men and 320 women), up from 287 in 1990. It is a model estimate by birthplace, not a count of citizens, and it does not say how many are retired.¹²

Getting there

The two official sources differ on the month the flights stopped. The Tourism Ministry files do not name airlines, and the 2022 to 2025 sheets have an “Other” row, so “none listed” is the exact reading. Russia's ambassador says many trips now go through other foreign transport hubs.²⁴

Money, rules and paperwork

• Average pension, 2026US$348the average old-age pension, ₽27,224 a month, at the rate of 1 July 2026 (our calculation)^{7, 5}
• Law 171-07, as writtenUS$1,500a month for a pensioner in the 2007 text: about 4.3 times the average pension (our calculation)²⁶
• Everyday prices126%DR household prices as a share of Russia's, 2024 (our calculation)²⁷
• Health spending, 2023US$489per person in the DR, against US$1,003 in Russia²⁸

On this national average basket the DR is not cheaper than Russia, and the result depends on the 2024 rouble rate (₽92.55 per US$). Health spending is not the price of the same treatment. The Law 171-07 amounts are as written in 2007; a Dominican lawyer must confirm them.^{27, 28, 26}

Not legal, tax or immigration advice. Each case needs a Dominican lawyer and a tax adviser, and any payment question needs the business's own bank and lawyer.²⁶

6What it means for DR businesses serving people from Russia

What the figures mean for a Dominican business serving people from Russia.

• Speak Russian, and know the Russian paperwork

  A Russian mover's pension, tax and health papers all come from Russian offices, in Russian. A business that can explain them in Russian removes a hard step. In 2025, 56% of arrivals from Russia landed at Santo Domingo's two airports and 39% at Punta Cana (our calculations).¹

• Payments come first

  Russian bank cards do not work in the DR, and direct transfers from Russia are not possible, says Russia's Foreign Ministry.² The US, the EU and the UK all have Russia sanctions in force.^{33, 34, 35} Before taking payment from a customer who banks in Russia, a DR business must check sanctions and payment rules with its own bank and lawyer.

• The services they need

  The needs that follow from Russian rules:

  • Insurers and clinics: Russian compulsory health insurance covers care in Russia, and Russia's Foreign Ministry strongly advises buying medical insurance before a trip to the DR.^{30, 2}
  • Paperwork help: a pensioner abroad must confirm once a year that they are alive. A personal visit to a Russian embassy or consulate is free, and Russia has had an embassy in Santo Domingo since April 2025.^{8, 36}
  • Residency lawyers: as written in 2007, Law 171-07 sets US$1,500 a month for a pensioner and US$2,000 a month for a rentista; according to a press summary, Law 30-26 (June 2026) may change how incentives combine. A Dominican lawyer must confirm the current rules, and whether a pension paid only in Russia counts.^{26, 37}
  • Tax advisers: Russia has no double taxation treaty and no social security agreement with the DR. A tax adviser and a Dominican lawyer must confirm what that means for each person.^{13, 14}
  • Banks: only the business's own bank can say which payments it can accept from customers who bank in Russia.²
  • Rentals and tours: 60% of 2025 arrivals from Russia came in January to April and November to December (our calculation).¹

• What a pension looks like

  The average old-age pension was ₽27,224 a month on 1 July 2026: about US$348 at that day's rate, and about US$321 at the rate of 25 September 2026 (our calculations). As written in 2007, Law 171-07 asks a pensioner for US$1,500 a month, about 4.3 times that average (our calculation). Pensions granted since 2015 to people abroad are paid in Russia, in roubles.^{7, 5, 26, 8}

• Stay honest about the size

  Between 3,054 and 3,072 air arrivals a year since 2023 and 427 residencies in 2025 make a small market, and payments are hard. Most Russian wealth stays in Russia.^{1, 3} Retire.do puts a business's listing next to its guides and move plan. It cannot promise customers, and the site has no traffic figures yet.

7Risks and caveats

• Wealth in Russia is not money in the DR. No source estimates how much Russian wealth, home-sale money or business-sale money is spent abroad, let alone in the Dominican Republic. Most of it stays in Russia.
• Model estimates. UBS's millionaire, billionaire, inequality and growth figures are modelled; its millionaire counts are not comparable with earlier editions, and its growth figure is an average, which the richest influence heavily.⁶
• Survey limits. The Bank of Russia's 2024 household survey under-represents high-income households, its asset median leaves out cash, and it gives the authors' views, not the Bank's.¹⁵
• No inheritance figures. Russia has no inheritance tax, so no tax statistics measure inheritances, and we found no national estimate for the next ten years.¹⁶
• Arrivals are trips, not people. The central bank's method changed in 2021. Since 2022 its figures are not whole numbers, which suggests weighted estimates (rounded here). 2020 reflects the pandemic.¹
• Counts disagree. The ambassador's estimate of about 20,000 tourists is far above the official 3,067 arrivals and 8,138 entries for 2025, and his year and method are unknown.^{24, 1, 23}
• Residency counts cover every purpose. The DGM file covers all residency types (work, family, investment, pensioner) and does not say whether renewals are included. Residencies to all nationalities rose from 19,698 in 2018 to 34,778 in 2025, mainly to Haitian and Venezuelan citizens.³
• Pension counts are page figures. The Social Fund's counts of pensioners abroad are undated page statements, not a statistical series, with no country breakdown and no explanation of the fall.²¹
• Emigration data are partial. Rosstat's file ends in 2023 and counts all citizenships, and it probably misses people who leave without deregistering. The UN counts people by birthplace, and many probably moved within the Soviet Union (our reading).^{22, 12}
• Rules change. Russia's rules for transferring pensions abroad have been set by three decrees since 2022 (No. 757, No. 493 and now No. 10, from 1 January 2026), and the EU adopted its 21st sanctions package on 23 July 2026. Check with a bank and a lawyer before any transaction.^{29, 34}
• Currency. The rouble moves a lot: the average old-age pension was worth about US$348 at the 1 July 2026 rate and about US$321 at the 25 September 2026 rate (our calculations).^{5, 7}
• Safety. Russia's Foreign Ministry information page for the DR has no graded advisory level. It calls the security situation fairly stable and under the authorities' control. It advises keeping money, jewellery and expensive phones out of sight in public, avoiding unsafe areas after dark and using reliable taxi services; it calls driving largely chaotic, and it strongly advises buying medical insurance before the trip (undated page, accessed 25 September 2026; parts look old, such as a DR population of 8.6 million).²
• Law and tax are not advice here. Law 171-07 (as written in 2007), Law 30-26 (known here only from a press summary), Dominican tax on Russian pensions and whether a pension paid only in Russia counts for residency all need a Dominican lawyer and a tax adviser.^{26, 37}
• Health cover. “No compulsory-insurance cover abroad” is our reading of the law; the Federal Compulsory Health Insurance Fund's site could not be reached.³⁰
• Flights. No date is set to resume direct flights, and today's connecting routes are known only in general terms.^{11, 24}

8Sources

Figures were checked against the original publications. Where only press coverage could be read, the source line says so. “Our calculation” means we derived the figure from published numbers; the publisher did not print it.