General budgets for the state include a set of important steps living ministers and retirees could rely on. Approved in late November 2022, these measures were consolidated for 2023 and centered on adjusting payroll with the CPI. The result was an 8.5% increase for pensioners contributed by the Social Security system, covering death and survival benefits, permanent disability, and retirement, all without premiums and pay slips. The Minimum Living Income remained a target, and price increases were expected to persist through 2023, with a 5% uplift applied from July 2022.
These decisions are aimed at sustaining the Spanish economy by limiting the erosion of purchasing power. People in the lowest income brackets are particularly affected by monthly price rises caused by inflation, which often leaves families with little room to save, handle emergencies, or simply make ends meet.
New date for increase in pensions: Pensioners will be happy
In addition to updating the CPI for income drawn from public coffers, other measures were put in place to inject liquidity into households: a €200 payment through a wave of family support.
Refunds to retirees
On March 16, the plan expanded retirees’ rights, reduced the gender gap, and introduced a new sustainability framework for the public health system pension, along with a refund of income charged incorrectly to retirees.
Retirees whose earnings fall below €5,365 and whose annual income does not exceed €11,200, and who are not required to file an income tax return, were exempt from medicine payments. This situation affects around 6 million retirees in the country.
An error in the drug co-payment system meant that some retirees who should have paid nothing for medicines were charged. The General State Administration is now preparing to reimburse these amounts through Social Security. The refunds will be sent within the next six months to the bank account linked to the pension, and the exact sum will depend on the amount spent on medications.