A family of two parents and two children with an annual income of just over €30,000 completely loses the right to child benefit A21 – a threshold that, against the backdrop of the cost of living and the demographic crisis in Greece, is again at the center of controversy.
We are not talking about a new norm: this is how the scale has been structured for a long time benefits A21 from OPEKA. However, current prices for housing, food, electricity and transport force us to take a fresh look at the question: can a family with two children and a total income of about €2,500 per month before taxes be considered so secure that they no longer require government support?
— for a family of two parents and two children, the equivalence coefficient is 2;
— the third category A21 is valid up to equivalent income €15,000;
– accordingly, the actual family limit is €30,000;
— at €28,000 the family receives €56 per month;
– above €30,000, the right to A21 is terminated.
How do you get €30,000?
OPEKA uses not just total family income, but the so-called equivalent income. For a family of two parents and two children, the coefficient is 2: the first parent – 1, the second – 0.5, each child – 0.25.
Therefore, a family with an income of €28,000 receives an equivalent income of €14,000 and falls into the third scale A21. The official OPEKA example explicitly states the payout €56 per month for two children. With income above €30,000, the equivalent figure exceeds €15,000 – and the benefit disappears.
But other government programs are already recognizing the new reality
The paradox is that in other programs the authorities are already raising income limits. For example, the Ministry of Social Cohesion recently increased the threshold for nursery vouchers to €37,000 for families with one or two children. And for lease returns in 2026, there are also noticeably higher limits.
That is, the state itself actually admits that previous income levels no longer correspond well to the current cost of living, but the A21 scale remains much stricter.
“Athens News” examined in detail the real expenses of families in the material “Cost of Living in Greece in 2026”. Practical issues about benefits, school and parent support are also collected in our road map “Family and children in Greece”.
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