Government approves increase in Easter bonus for 14,000 beneficiaries

The Council of Ministers recently approved Deputy Minister of Social Welfare Marilena Evangelou's request to increase the Easter payments for low-income pensioner support scheme participants by 30% over the previous year.

Furthermore, the Council agreed not to put into effect a condition pertaining to the Easter bonus that had restricted deposits and was included in the revised plan for low-income retirees that took effect on January 1, 2023. The goal of this action is to keep the number of recipients from falling.

It's important to remember that this criterion wasn't used either the year before.

The Christodoulides government is implementing a number of policies to assist different demographic groups, including low-income elderly people, and this decision is one of them. One of these actions is offering a one-time cash assistance of €100 each month from April to June.

The Easter payment for retirees is €250 this year instead of €190 as it was last year. It will be given to low-income pensioners whose income does not exceed €190 for:

• Individuals living alone with an income of €7,000.
• Two-person households with an income of €12,000.

The income threshold increases by €3,500 for each dependant beyond the age of 14 and by €2,100 for each dependent under the age of 14, depending on the composition of the household.

The Easter payment is anticipated to help about 13,500 low-income seniors, with an estimated €3.3 million in expenses.

On April 30, 2024, beneficiaries can anticipate receiving the Easter allowance by bank transfer into their bank accounts.

During the Council of Ministers meeting, President Nicos Christodoulides declared that the Easter payment for low-income retired individuals will increase by €60. He stressed the importance of this increase because of the recent anti-austerity measures that were declared on March 28. This is especially true for around 14,000 disadvantaged pensioners.