According to e-EFKA, the problem of overdue main pensions has shrunk impressively and has practically been limited to the years 2020 and 2021
The solution to the problem of overdue main pensions is now in the final stretch. The Minister of Labor and Social Affairs, Kostis Hatzidakishas from time to time referred to the issuance schedule of the last overdue pensions, which remain, with an implementation horizon of the end of the summer.
It is typical, as can be seen from the available data of the e-EFKA, that in the last months, there has been a more than doubling of the rate of issuing pensions, the result of a series of actions implemented by the ministry and the administration of the Organization.
According to e-EFKAin the first half of 2022, more pensions were issued than were issued in the whole of 2019, with the trend showing that this year the issuance of new pensions will exceed 300,000, which is an all-time record for EFKA data.
This progress is reflected in the aggregated figures. As the agency notes, the most impressive fact is that a total of 94% of the pensions relating to the period 2016-2022 have been issued and only 6% remain to be issued by the end of August. In real numbers, he explains, this means that 1,061,171 million main pensions have been issued and around 63,000 remain to be cleared.
He also emphasizes that the progress is also reflected in the issuance of pensions per Fund. It is typical that in the first half of 2022, 55,000 pensions were issued in the IKA, that is, as many as in the whole of 2019. The IKA has improved by 52% the rates of awarding compared to last year and is expected to close 2022 with pension issuances that will touch the 100,000. Correspondingly, in the OGA, the pension awards of the first five months exceeded those of the whole of 2021, increased by 32% compared to last year. A similar picture is presented by OAEE, where the improvement in award rates compared to last year exceeds 30%.
Clearing of backlogs of old years
The problem of overdue main pensions has shrunk impressively and has practically been limited to the years 2020 and 2021, the body points out.
In detail, e-EFKA announced a few days ago that the pending main pensions, (except international and inflexible), for the years 2016, 2017 and 2018 were zeroed out.
Based on the e-EFKA data:
- The same is true for 2019, as 98.9% of applications submitted that year have been issued and backlogs are limited to just 1.1%. This is a total of 1,710 highly complex applications, which will also be cleared within the summer.
- For 2020, 94.7% of the applications submitted that year have been issued and only 8,570 applications remain to be cleared (5.3% of the total). These are pension applications mainly from the second half of the year.
- For 2021, 80.6% of the pension applications submitted that year have been issued, which was also a record year as new applications topped 212,000. 38,574 applications remain to be cleared.
- For 2022, the picture is just as good, with 70% of applications submitted by the end of March already issued. “The majority of these were issued in a maximum of four months, a record time for EFKA data and the multi-month delays of previous years. In fact, thousands of pensions were issued in less than 60 days, including many of those issued by certified public accountants and lawyers. The new fast track procedure contributed to this rapid reduction in the issuance time, where it provides for the issuance of the pension in three months by the EFKA employee and, in case it is not issued, then it is issued automatically based on the data available in the Information EFKA system and those declared by the insured when submitting his application” clarifies the organization.
Significant de-escalation of overdue debts
The significant reduction in pending pension applications was combined with a rapid reduction in arrears to pending pensioners. This progress was reflected in the presentation given by Mr. Hatzidakis to the last cabinet and which was emphasized by the Prime Minister himself, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, during his installation.
In May 2020, arrears to pending pensioners amounted to €693 million. In May 2022, this amount has been reduced by 75% to €156 million. In fact, in June, an even greater reduction is observed, as the amount is 100 million euros and the corresponding reduction reaches 85%, which will be paid to the beneficiaries by the end of August.
K. Hatzidakis: The effort is paying off and this is reflected in the numbers
Speaking to the Athenian-Macedonian News Agency, the Minister of Labor and Social Affairs, Kostis Hatzidakis, states: “With a plan, system and commitment to the goal, the big problem of overdue main pensions is gradually coming to an end. The great effort made by the people of the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs and EFKA is bearing fruit and this is reflected in the numbers. Only 6% of the applications submitted in the years 2016-2022 remain to be cleared, as over 1 million pensions have been issued in recent years. The years 2016 to 2019 were zeroed out, leaving only 1,710 applications, which are also to be cleared in the summer. We are not celebrating. However, we do not ignore the great progress that has been made and which is the result of improving the productivity of employees and a series of legislative, digital and organizational actions, which we have “run” in recent months and which produce tangible results.
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