Putin, who will next month begin his third term as president, earned 3.7 million rubles (Rs 65 lakh) in 2011, according to official declarations on the Russian government website. Medvedev earned 3.3 million rubles (Rs 56 lakh). The president-elect and his wife — the seldom-seen Lyudmila — declared owning two Russian-made GAZ passenger cars, a Niva sports utility vehicle, and a trailer that Putin inherited from his father.

Big pockets: Vladimir Putin has earned more than Dmitry Medvedev for the fourth straight year. File pic