More than 1.22 million applications have been filed online by would-be beneficiaries of a "social dividend" that the leftist-rightist coalition government plans to hand out in December, with nearly half (43.14 percent) of applications already approved.
As opposed to last year's 617-million-euro "holiday bonus", doled out to pensioners in the country receiving less than 800 euros in total social security benefits per month, regardless of real estate holdings and other assets, this year's welfare handout is accompanied by strict income and asset criteria.
The average one-off bonus per eligible beneficiary this year is 573.88 euros, with the total outlay for the specific spending measure reaching 302.7 million euros.
Based on figures provided by the relevant ministry, and derived from the electronic platform created to field applications, some 20 percent of applications (247,789) have been rejected.
A deadline of Dec. 12, 2017 applies for filing an application.
The increasingly beleaguered Tsipras government has maintained that up to 1.4 billion euros will be redistributed to disadvantaged segments of society via various spending schemes over the coming month, money it claims was accumulated by over-exceeding a primary budget surplus target primarily through increased social security contributions, higher employment and by fighting tax evasion.
Conversely, Greece's opposition has pointed to a massive "tax tsunami" imposed in 2016, which increased VAT rates - the highest and predominant rate now at 24 percent - income taxes, lowered tax-free annual income thresholds, and by slapping higher surcharges and levies on everything from cell phone use, alcohol, tobacco, fuels and even overnight hotel stays, among others.
