They have been tabled to the House this evening and are expected to be voted on tomorrow by the plenary on the legislative provisions abolishing the cut of widow's pensions after the three-year period, for pensioners under Law 4387/2016 (Tsipra – Katrougalou Act).
The aim is for the approximately 8,500 retired widows of the public who are entitled to increases to see them end August with the pensions of September.
In particular , public widows who had suffered cuts since 2020 , will immediately see their pension increased by 50%.. That is , if a pensioner receiving a widow's pension of EUR 800 had suffered for 6 years cuts and received only EUR 446 , which is the threshold for widow's pensions , from September he will receive EUR 800 again.
However, there is reportedly no provision for the reimbursement of retroactive pensions for these pensioners, which legal circles consider to constitute injustice and unequal treatment.
In addition to this proportion of pensioners, a total of over 200,000 pensioners will benefit from the regulation and end their long-term anguish.
In particular, the arrangements restore the distortions created by Law 4387/2016, abolish the cuts provided for in the main widowing pensions after the three years, recognise the self-sufficiency of insurance rights and eliminate the financial burdens of the past.
The Minister for Labour and Social Security Victory Kerameos stated: «We are abolishing a great ten-year-old social injustice, which has plagued thousands of families. We introduce a new, fair and socially sensitive framework, restoring the distortions created by the Tsipras – Katrougalou Act. Thousands of widows' pension beneficiaries are exempt from a status of uncertainty and hostage. We restore legal certainty and strengthen the protection of families who have lost their man, establishing a future of stability, security and mutual trust between citizens and the State. Solving this long-term unfinished business was made possible thanks to the overperformance achieved by the bold implementation of the Digital Labour Card and increasing employment. The increased revenue contributed to the creation of the necessary financial area that enabled us to move on to this important social intervention, without disrupting budgetary stability».
The four major changes made by the relevant provisions:
1. A reduction in widow's pensions after three years is abolished and a permanent payment of the main pension due to death is established on the basis of the initial entitlement rates. Those who had already suffered the reduction in their pension from 70% to 35%, by voting on the order will immediately see their pension returning to 70%, i.e. doubling.
2. For more than 75,000 widowers to whom the above cuts, provided for in Law 4387/2016 Tsipras-Katrougalu, have not been applied as they are abolished with the new provisions and the State definitively waives any search for retroactive amounts. Thus, thousands of households are exempt from the stress of possible accounting for amounts not due to their own fault.
3. It is ensured that, when a pensioner receives a pension from his own right and at the same time a pension due to death, which derives from different insurance rights, he will continue to receive both national pensions corresponding to his rights and will not be cut off from one of the two provided for by the Tsipras-Katrougalu Act. Some 122,000 pensioners are protected from the cut of the second national law provided for by Law 4387/2016 and furthermore no amount will be sought retroactively from this cause either.
4.4. It is ensured that children who have lost both their parents and are entitled to pensions due to death by both, will in future receive the prescribed percentage from each parent's national pension separately in accordance with the current legislative framework, and will now receive a national pension instead of half. This means that these children will see the amount of national pension they receive doubled.
Mary Lambadis
