Pensioners will receive 20,000, 27,500 or 35,000 dinars, depending on the level of their income, whilst recipients of financial social assistance and child benefit, as well as veteran’s allowance beneficiaries, will each receive 25,000 dinars.
Veterans who do not receive the allowance are entitled to 10,000 dinars. Saša Stevanović, State Secretary at the Ministry of Finance, states that the payment of the one-off support to all pensioners will begin at 9 a.m. Aleksandar Čortan, a member of the Executive Board of Banka Poštanska Štedionica, explains that the funds are already available to the bank’s clients, whilst the payment of 6,000 dinars to adult citizens will also begin on 22nd September.
As of today, money is in the accounts of more than a million and a half pensioners, as well as other citizens covered by the new state support package. Pensioners will receive the one-off support automatically, and the payment amount depends on the size of their pension.
State Secretary at the Ministry of Finance Saša Stevanović explains that pensioners with the lowest incomes will be paid the highest amount – 35,000 dinars. Those whose incomes lie between the lowest and average pensions will receive 27,500 dinars, whilst pensioners with incomes above the average pension are entitled to 20,000 dinars. “Those with the lowest pensions will receive the highest support amount, 35,000 dinars. Those ranging from the lowest to the average pension will receive 27,500, and our oldest fellow citizens with pensions above the average will receive 20,000 dinars,” says Stevanović.
Pensioners did not have to submit applications for this payment.
Money already in accounts, postal workers head out into the field
When it comes to clients of Banka Poštanska Štedionica, the funds are already available, says Aleksandar Čortan, a member of the bank’s Executive Board. The money can be used via mobile and electronic banking and payment cards, as well as withdrawn from cash machines (ATMs). With the opening of branches of Poštanska Štedionica and the Post Office of Serbia, funds are also available at counters.
Today’s payment covers more than 1.1 million clients of Poštanska Štedionica.
A special procedure has been established for around 150,000 pensioners who receive their pensions at their home address. “Those pensions are ready, and postal workers set out into the field this morning and will successively carry out the payment of their entitlements from today,” states Čortan.
25,000 dinars each for social assistance and child benefit recipients
The new package does not cover pensioners alone. Recipients of financial social assistance, as well as those who exercise the right to child benefit, are entitled to a one-off support payment of 25,000 dinars each. According to Stevanović, citizens who hold veteran status and receive a veteran’s allowance will receive the same amount.
For today’s payment round, these categories did not have to apply separately either; instead, eligibility is determined on the basis of existing records.
According to data presented by Stevanović in the Morning Programme, today’s payments of various forms of support cover approximately two million citizens.
10,000 dinars each for veterans without a veteran’s allowance
A special category consists of citizens who have been recognised as having veteran status but do not receive a veteran’s allowance. They will each be paid 10,000 dinars.
Čortan explains that for those who do not have an account with the bank, Poštanska Štedionica will open a dedicated account free of charge. “Banka Poštanska Štedionica will open dedicated accounts for them free of charge, from which they will be able to withdraw their funds, either at the bank or at the Post Offices of Serbia,” says Čortan.
Beneficiaries of other entitlements covered by the payment already have accounts through which they receive their regular payments, whilst pensioners who receive their pension at their home address will have the money arrive in the same way.
From 22nd September, 6,000 dinars each for adult citizens
The second major payment round begins on 22nd September and relates to support of 6,000 dinars each for adult citizens. Unlike today’s payment, some citizens need to check their status for this support and, if necessary, submit an application.
Čortan explains that pensioners, social benefit recipients and veterans do not need to apply, whilst other adult citizens can check their status via the Treasury Administration portal.
The application deadline is 21st September at midnight (24:00).
A personal identification number (JMBG) and identity card number are required for the check. If the system shows that a citizen is not registered, an application for support can be submitted electronically.
“My advice is to go to the portal. Simply by typing in their personal identification number and identity card number, they can check their status and apply for the payment starting on 22nd September,” explains Čortan. In particular, he states, those who reached adulthood in the period from 2007 to the present day should check their status so that they can submit an application, if necessary, and exercise their right to support.
Shareholders of the Share Fund automatically qualify
The 22nd September payment also covers shareholders of the Share Fund.
Čortan states that this concerns more than 4.3 million citizens of Serbia who have automatically qualified and are ready for payment.
Citizens who were shareholders previously selected the banks through which they would receive funds, and Čortan states that more than 98 percent of them chose Banka Poštanska Štedionica.
Nearly €1 billion for the whole package
Stevanović states that the total support package is worth €980.6 million, or almost €1 billion, and stresses that public finances are stable. He explains that economic growth during the first half of the year was higher than initially planned, which also brought higher revenues into the budget.
Better-than-expected results, according to him, were recorded in multiple sectors – construction, services, transport, telecommunications and tourism.
A good agricultural season, he adds, also contributed to lower inflation than initially expected.
“If you have higher growth, just as we had higher growth in the first half of the year than what we planned, that means more money in the budget,” explains Stevanović.
He states that inflation in July stood at 2.2%, following 1.9% in June, whilst the projection hovers around 3%, within the National Bank of Serbia’s target range.
September support due to higher household costs
One of the reasons why a significant portion of the support is being paid out precisely in September is the increased household costs during that period. The start of the school year brings expenses for textbooks, school supplies and children’s other needs, whilst preparations for winter, the procurement of firewood and winter food supply (zimnica) begin at the same time.
Stevanović says that the aim of the measures is to help citizens during a period when household budgets are under greater pressure. “With these measures, we wanted to show that we care about citizens, to reach out and help in September, which is the longest month after January,” Stevanović points out.
Additional pressure is presented by fuel price movements on the global market, which spill over into the prices of other products and services.
Stevanović also reminds that the state reduced excise duty by 25%, forgoing a portion of revenue in order to, in his words, cushion the financial blow to both the population and the economy.
Poštanska Štedionica: Ready for the 22nd September payment
Čortan says that Poštanska Štedionica, together with the Post Office of Serbia, is logistically ready for both the current payment and the large number of transactions expected from 22nd September. Available are 241 bank branches and more than 1,550 branches of the Post Office of Serbia, as well as two mobile bank branches and around 800 cash machines.
“Banka Poštanska Štedionica, the Post Offices of Serbia and other state institutions have done a tremendous job in previous days, with just one goal – that every citizen receives their funds completely free of charge and on time,” Čortan stresses.
He expects the entire payment operation to be completed by the end of September.
Pensions up by 7.5% from 1st December
Alongside one-off payments, Stevanović also announces a 7.5% increase in pensions from 1st December. He explains that this refers to an increase determined by applying the Swiss formula.
According to the data he presented, the average pension currently stands at €486, and following the increase it should reach around €520.
“From 1st December, all our oldest fellow citizens will receive 7.5%. Today the average pension is €486, and with this increase an average of €520 will be paid out,” says Stevanović.
This is, he adds, another step towards the set goal of the average pension reaching €650.
Public sector wages up by 8%, social welfare up by 12%
An increase in public sector wages is also scheduled from 1st December.
Wages for public sector employees are set to be increased by 8%, whilst a 12% increase is planned for employees in social welfare.
Stevanović points out that the novelty is that this time they will not wait for 1st January for the earnings increase. “All civil servants will receive an 8% increase from 1st December, except for employees in social welfare, who will receive 12%,” states Stevanović.
According to him, the goal is for employees to feel the effects of the increase before January, which is traditionally one of the most financially demanding months for households.
Poštanska Štedionica expects a profit of around 8 billion dinars
Speaking about the operations of Banka Poštanska Štedionica, Čortan says that the bank is currently operating above its plan for this year.
Profit is expected to be at the level of around 8 billion dinars.
“With a clearly articulated state interest, the bank is operating and will continue to work in the coming years as well,” Čortan concludes.
(RTS, 14.09.2026)
https://www.rts.rs/vesti/ekonomija/6038885/pomoc-penzioneri-gradjani.html