"Quiet Irritation With The Authorities Is Increasing."
- 27.11.2025, 15:54
How not to get into the database of "deadbeats" and what to do if you have already been billed a "cosmic" bill.
Belarusians started to receive massive huge bills for communal services: tariffs for the so-called "deadbeats" have increased many times. People receive vouchers for hundreds and thousands of rubles - even those who by law are not due to pay the increased rates.
What steps can be taken to avoid being included in the database of "deadbeats" and avoid inflated tariffs in the vouchers? For a comment, the site Charter97.org turned to human rights activist and former political prisoner Leonid Sudalenko:
- Official employment is the simplest and clearest way. If a person works under a labor contract or a civil law contract (contract for work, services), and the data about him are timely transferred to the Federal Employment Service, he is not automatically included in the database of the unemployed.
If a person is registered as an individual entrepreneur or pays tax on professional income (through the service "Professional Income"), he is considered to be employed. The main thing is to pay tax on time, because omissions can lead to the opposite interpretation.
There is a wide list of people who by law should not be included in the base:
Full-time students. No additional action is required. It is important that the university or college transferred your status to the relevant authorities.
Women on maternity leave or leave to care for a child under 3 years of age - automatically occupied.
Persons with disabilities. If the group is set, they are not included in the database.
Pensioners. They fall into a separate category and are not included.
People caring for a disabled person or an elderly person are also considered employed, but it is advisable to submit supporting documents.
Working abroad. This is where most errors occur. To avoid inclusion in the database, collect documents on employment abroad: labor contract, certificate from the employer, foreign payment statements. At the request of the Commission provide these documents. If you often cross the border - keep marks in your passport or copies of airline tickets.
Often, if there is evidence that a person works and pays taxes in another country, it is not included in the base.
Voluntary payment of contributions to the Federal Social Security Fund. Those who officially do not work, but want to confirm "social activity", can pay voluntary insurance contributions to the FSZN. This is considered a form of participation in the economy.
Commissions on the ground periodically check citizens. To avoid problems, respond to official letters and messages. If you are asked to clarify your status, it is better to do it in writing and keep a copy. Even with the status "occupied" people are sometimes mistakenly included in the database.
To avoid this, periodically (once a year) request your status in the commission at your place of residence. Keep an eye on your housing cards - if there are unexpectedly increased tariffs, immediately take action: file an application to the commission and an application to the Housing and Utilities Department.
If you rent an apartment, make repairs or provide one-time services, but you have not registered - enter into official contracts, keep receipts and acts of completed work. In some cases, this may be recognized as a type of employment, but the assessment is made individually.
- If a person has already been issued a huge bill for utilities, what are the real ways to challenge the charges and achieve recalculation?
- The first and most important step - collecting evidence. When appealing the erroneous charging of increased tariffs, the evidence base is crucial.
It is necessary to collect:
documents (scans/photos + originals) before and after entering the database of the unemployed;
payment receipts, bank statements;
copies of personal account;
documents confirming employment or actual activity: employment contract, certificates from the place of work, contracting agreements, IE declarations, payroll statements, tax payments, lease or service contracts, documents on payment for labor abroad, etc.
Documentation is the foundation of all further actions. In disputes, lack of evidence is almost guaranteed to put a citizen in a vulnerable position. The next step is an official written request to the commission that determines employment status. Not a verbal one, but a written one, which fixes your initiative and starts the procedure of consideration.
In the application you should demand:
verification of your status;
explanation of the motivated reason for inclusion in the database of the unemployed;
if there is an error - recalculation of housing and utility services in accordance with Resolution No. 465.
It is better to apply in person (with registration of the application and receipt of a copy with a mark) or by registered mail.
It is important to act in two directions. At the same time with an appeal to the commission send an application to the housing and utilities organization (HES or management organization) with a request to make a recalculation, provide calculation data and formulas, referring to the same Resolution №465.
After receiving a reply you can assess whether the tariff is correctly applied and whether there are grounds for further appeal.
If the answer is negative or there is no answer, keep all letters, responses, notices of delivery. Appealing to the court makes sense only if there is a documented refusal or violations of procedures. The court, as a rule, requires exactly written evidence of appeals and reactions of bodies / housing and communal services. In some cases, publicity (appeals in the media or social networks) makes local authorities review decisions faster and more carefully. But given the political context, this step requires caution and understanding of the risks.
- Can mass mailing of such "space" vouchers provoke serious discontent among people?
- In the current period of political repression, the priority of self-preservation has become the determining factor. People may be extremely dissatisfied, but they are not ready for open collective action. Negativity will continue to accumulate, but so far it is not capable of turning into open protest, as as it did during the No Idle Workers' Marches of 2017.
In the current Belarusian context, any social discontent will not be able to turn into protest, but it significantly increases latent (silent) irritation, reduces trust in state institutions, and strengthens people's readiness to look for alternatives, including leaving the country.