The government is set to expand the categories of Christmas bonus recipients and provide additional financial support to mountain community residents, President Christodoulides announced today ahead of a cabinet meeting.
Speaking at the start of the Council of Ministers meeting, Christodoulides revealed plans to increase the number of Christmas bonus beneficiaries for 2024 by 40,000, bringing the total to more than 100,000 recipients.
The expanded scheme will now include national guardsmen, new mothers, resettled individuals, families with three or more children receiving child benefits, and single-parent families eligible for benefits, regardless of their income level or savings, he said.
The total cost of the expanded Christmas bonus scheme will reach approximately €20 million, marking an increase of more than €3 million compared to last year’s allocation.
Additionally, the cabinet will decide on providing emergency financial assistance to residents of communities located above 600 metres altitude. The aid will amount to 50 percent of their previous allocation, benefiting around 23,000 individuals from 10,000 households across 128 areas, with an estimated cost of €3 million.
Christodoulides emphasised that these measures reflect responsible financial management, noting that recent credit rating upgrades have enabled the government to implement targeted social policies whilst expanding the number of beneficiaries compared to previous years.
