Two more social benefits will be paid at the end of this week, the bonus for those who do not qualify for a contributory pension as well as the Grant for the Elderly benefit. In total, the beneficiaries reach a total of 54,445, between whom the sum of €26.6 million is being paid.
An important change in the bonus for those who do not qualify for a pension is that from this year the bonus rate is linked to the amount of contributions that a person has paid. The greater the number of contributions, the higher the bonus rate. This bonus is paid to those who have paid less than 10 years of contributions. The rates vary from €550 for those who have paid one year of contributions to €1,000 for those who have paid up to 9 years. This is the seventh time that the bonus rate has been improved since it was first given in 2015. A total of 13,216 senior citizens, mostly women, are receiving the bonus with an investment of more than €10 million.
These details were announced during a press conference by the Minister for Social Policy and Children’s Rights Michael Falzon. “With satisfaction I can announce that by the first 5 weeks of the year, we have already implemented 24 out of 45 social measures from Budget 2025. This means that the Maltese people are already seeing the fruits of more than half of the social measures promised for this year,” the minister said.
Permanent Secretary Mark Musù spoke about another payment that will be made this week, which is the Senior Citizens’ Grant, and which will benefit 41,329 people. They will receive €16.5 million between them. Seniors aged between 75 and 79 are receiving €350 per year, while those over 80 are receiving €450 per year. Meanwhile, thanks to a new Budget measure being implemented from this week, people who are caring for two family members will be paid one and a half times the highest rate of benefit to which they are entitled.
