Thanks to annual indexing, maternity capital funds are now becoming a real support for families wishing to improve their living conditions.
Maternity capital is a way of state support for families where the second and subsequent children are born. It is allowed to spend it not for any purpose, but only for improving housing conditions, teaching children or increasing the funded part of the pension. You cannot receive these funds in cash. Money is issued in the form of a certificate, which is then used for its intended purpose.
Who is entitled to receive capital
The list of persons is established by law and is not subject to broad interpretation. The maternity capital has the right to count on:
- a woman - a citizen of the Russian Federation, whose second or third child was born after January 1, 2007, provided that no maternity capital was previously issued for children;
- a man with Russian citizenship who single-handedly adopted a second or subsequent child by a court decision, if the verdict entered into force before January 1, 2007;
- the father of the child, regardless of citizenship, if the mother of the child no longer has the right to receive maternity capital due to death, deprivation of parental rights or the commission of a deliberate crime against the child;
- a minor child (or children in equal shares) or a child studying at the full-time department of an educational institution (up to 23 years of age), if the father or mother has lost the right to receive state support measures.
How to register capital
After the birth (adoption) of a baby, a person applying for state support measures must appear at the Pension Fund office according to his registration, fill out an application (samples are available on the Fund's website and in local departments) and submit:
- act records of the birth of all children;
- the passport;
- documents of adoption.
All children's documents must have a mark on the child's citizenship.
The application is considered within a month, after which a certificate is issued. This type of state support is not taxed. In 2014, the maternity capital is 429,408 rubles 50 kopecks.
Its amount is indexed annually.
What kind of housing can I buy
With the help of maternity capital, the family gets a chance to improve living conditions. This concept includes:
- buying an apartment or house;
- payment for the construction of a private house by a hired team of builders;
- self-construction of living quarters;
- reimbursement of funds for the construction of a residential building;
- the purchase of a "share", an apartment in the HOA or housing cooperative;
- the use of capital as a first installment in a residential building under construction;
- payment by capital of the loan, including interest on it, for the purchase of housing. Overdue interest, fines and penalties are not paid in equity.
Depending on the type of home purchase through maternity capital, the following package should be submitted to the Pension Fund:
- equity participation agreement;
- documentation on the ownership of land for individual housing construction;
- permission to build a private house;
- loan agreement;
- a certificate of the amount owed to the bank.
Features of buying a home using capital
According to the law, the readiness of the object, acquired at the expense of state support, must be at least 70%. Capital funds are transferred to the home seller's account, usually within 2-3 months. The length of the terms sometimes makes it difficult to search for "secondary" housing: not every seller will agree to wait so long.
As a rule, money is paid out in two installments, 50% each.
It should be noted that a document on maternity capital is issued not to a specific child or parent, but to the entire family. Therefore, a house or apartment is acquired in common ownership (joint or shared).
If housing is bought with a mortgage, then the parents give written guarantees that after the payment is made and all restrictions are lifted, part of the housing will be re-registered for children with a separate share. Compliance with these obligations is monitored by the Pension Fund. In case of full payment for the property, the shares will be determined immediately.
The company conducting the construction must have a provision in its charter that it is entitled to receive payment from maternity capital. In contracts for equity participation and purchase and sale, the procedure for settlements by capital is also prescribed.
State support funds can be used both in full and in part, for example, leaving children for education or a contribution to the funded part of the pension.
