Despite the fact that the law over the disbursement of the social dividend clearly stipulates that can be neither confiscated nor taxed, tens of claimants of the one-off payment discovered today that the money deposited in their accounts had suddenly disappeared after it was confiscated by banks seeking payment for outstanding debts. (The social dividend is a one-off payment of about 500 euros from the government to low income citizens. In total 500 million euros will be disbursed – the money comes from the better-than-expected primary surplus).
Specifically the law states, “The social dividend is tax-free, and is not subject to deductions and cannot be confiscated, nor be used to offset existing debts to the state or private institutions.”
The problem appears to have arisen because the Labour Ministry and the Treasury failed to issue an encyclical to the banks informing them that the social dividend cannot be confiscated.
In statements the Labour Minister stressed that the law was clear and that the social dividend cannot be withheld for any reason. Speaking to MEGA TV he announced that if the banks had committed any ‘illegitimate’ act, “it will be corrected immediately, and I mean today.”
“The social dividend cannot be touched, cannot be reduced, it is a sum for vulnerable groups and cannot be confiscated,” he stressed. He said that the government had already raised the issue with the Union of Greek Banks, and that he had personally spoken with the CEO of the National Bank of Greece, Alexandros Tourkolias and that within the day the bank would make an announcement.