Belgrade - The Serbian government plans to deploy about €600 million in cash transfers and related support that will reach nearly half of the country's population, President Aleksandar Vucic said in Belgrade.
The announced package allocates €377 million in one-off cash payments to the country's 1.66 million pensioners. In total, the program will deliver benefits to more than 3 million people and also includes subsidized medicines and other forms of assistance for vulnerable segments of the population.
According to the president's outline, pension recipients will receive handouts denominated in dollar equivalents, ranging from $200 to $340, with the largest sums reserved for those with the lowest incomes. The measures are presented as steps to raise living standards and to help reduce the cost of living for citizens across Serbia's population of about 6.6 million.
Vucic emphasized that the planned spending does not require new borrowing and noted that public debt remains around 44% of gross domestic product. He further linked future, permanent increases in pensions and wages to a specific economic threshold - permanent rises will follow if annual economic growth exceeds 3% year-over-year in 2026, he said.
The president also indicated that Serbia will likely hold early parliamentary elections in October or November, a move he described in the context of his effort to retain leadership of the government amid pressure from the opposition and ongoing protests.
The package combines a sizable one-off fiscal transfer to pensioners with broader social support measures centered on medicines and assistance for vulnerable groups. Officials framed the measures as targeted relief for households, particularly older and lower-income citizens, while asserting that the fiscal impact can be absorbed without increasing public borrowing.
Context limitations - The information above reflects the announcements made by the president. Details on implementation timelines, precise allocation criteria beyond the income-based differentiation for pensioners, and the budgetary mechanisms to finance the package were not specified in the statements described here.