The Latvian Pensioners’ Federation (LPF) has signed a cooperation agreement with the legal association Tiesiskums.lv to help Latvian pensioners recover unlawfully collected mandatory electricity procurement component (OIK) payments.
According to the Federation, this offers many pensioners a chance to recover an amount equivalent to nearly half a year’s pension — around two thousand euros. Any resident or entrepreneur in Latvia can apply to reclaim their OIK payments until the 1st of October of this year, with attorney fees only deducted from the recovered amount. Participation requires only joining the claim by signing the cooperation agreement via the Tiesiskums.lv portal.
“This is the first time I see such a considerate initiative toward Latvian citizens, especially seniors, low-income individuals, and people with disabilities, to rectify the injustice and unlawful actions committed against them and others,” said LPF Chairwoman Aija Barča, commenting on the voluntary initiative by Tiesiskums.lv.
“Every Latvian citizen who was forced to pay unlawful OIK charges for years has the right to fair compensation,” stated Tiesiskums.lv representative, sworn attorney and Doctor of Law Artis Stucka. He emphasized that the OIK scheme was, from the start, contrary to public interests and the principles of a democratic legal state.
Barča added that
demanding reimbursement for the unlawfully collected OIK is also a demand for public officials to take responsibility
for every decision they make. Therefore, through the signed cooperation, both parties commit not only to support the recovery of OIK payments but also to strengthen the rule of law in Latvia, including ensuring greater accountability in public administration. The agreement also aims to enhance public officials’ responsibility and empower individuals to seek compensation for damages caused. In doing so, it supports the values enshrined in the Latvian Constitution—human dignity, freedom, democracy, equality, and human rights—especially protecting the rights of pensioners and other vulnerable groups.
Under the agreement, LPF will inform its members about the initiative to recover the unjustly and unlawfully collected OIK payments and participate in other joint initiatives related to strengthening public accountability and protecting citizens’ rights, including pensioners’. Meanwhile, Tiesiskums.lv will organize seminars, discussions, consultations, and forums on OIK recovery and on strengthening the rule of law and public accountability.
Barča stressed that citizens’ wallets are not bottomless wells to be drained with arbitrary charges. “If you make a decision and sign it, then take responsibility for it. If the European Commission declared OIK unlawful back in 2017, why were we forced to keep paying it for another six long years? Every decision has a name and face—but accountability is lacking. This must change,” she said.
The Tiesiskums.lv application process is based on the collective action model, widely used in international legal practice when harm affects a broad segment of society.
Individual compensation amounts depend on specific electricity bills.
Once registered on the Tiesiskums.lv website and the agreement is signed electronically, the association will request detailed billing information from electricity providers to calculate the refund due to each claimant.
OIK recovery agreements can also be signed in person at regional forums organized across Latvia. Those unable to sign electronically should register on the Tiesiskums.lv website so that attorneys can plan in-person signing events in various regions and cities. Residents will be informed via the website and the association’s social media platforms.
According to Tiesiskums.lv, the OIK scheme was introduced in 2005, but in 2017, the European Commission ruled it unlawful, stating that it constituted illegal state aid to a narrow group of energy producers, thus violating Article 108(3) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union. Latvia never contested this decision, which remains binding. The conclusion that requiring all electricity users in Latvia to pay OIK was illegal also follows from the 10th of January, 2019 declaration by the Saeima, which called on the Ministry of Economics to end the “unjust regime aimed at supporting the interests of select individuals.” The Parliamentary Investigative Commission on the OIK also deemed the scheme contrary to public interest and the principles of a democratic legal state. However, the OIK regime was only terminated on the 1st of January, 2023, by a decision of the Saeima.
The Latvian Pensioners’ Federation (LPF) is a non-governmental organization that unites more than 150 pensioners’ organizations
across Latvia—in Riga, Kurzeme, Latgale, Selonia, Vidzeme, and Zemgale. Of Latvia’s 440,000 pensioners, about 22,000 are active within LPF.
Tiesiskums.lv brings together well-known Latvian lawyers and like-minded individuals with the aim of promoting the rule of law and accountability in public administration. The association seeks to increase responsibility among public officials, encourage more efficient use of public funds, and launch civic initiatives to help citizens recover damages caused by violations of human and fundamental rights. Recovering the unlawfully collected OIK payments is the association’s first organized initiative.
Read also: BNN Interview | Lawyer Stucka: everyone was deceived by the OIK – it’s time to hold someone accountable