Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis has announced a package of tax cuts, wage rises and family benefits worth some €2.2 billion, in an attempt to turn improved public finances into visible gains for households.
He set out the measures on September 5 at the Thessaloniki International Fair, where he delivers an annual address on the economy. The plan, billed as an agreement for progress and prosperity, brings together around 30 measures to be phased in between November 2026 and 2030.
The Greek Government put the cumulative cost at €3.5 billion by the end of the decade, equivalent to about 1.5 per cent of national output.
The monthly minimum wage would rise above €950 in 2027 and reach €1,000 in January 2028, up from €920 at present. Private-sector employees would also see pension contributions cut by half a percentage point from April 2027.
Pensioners aged over 65 are due to receive a permanent annual payment of €400 net from November 2026, an increase of €100. Public-sector staff would get a €500 gross Christmas bonus from December 2027 and monthly rises of €80 gross by January 2028.
Farmers would pay no income tax on earnings of up to €20,000 from the 2026 tax year, a concession that follows a winter of tractor blockades and the fallout from a European Union farm subsidy fraud scandal that reached the prime minister’s own office.
Families with three children and incomes of up to €20,000 would be exempt from income tax from January 2027. The allowance for larger families would rise by €1,000 for each child beyond the third, while the State would match parents’ savings deposits for newborns up to €1,200 a year.
On energy, wholesale electricity prices are due to fall by 30 per cent by 2029 and public service charges on household bills would be halved from January 2027.
A housing scheme worth up to €2 billion was also announced. The property transfer tax on homes bought by citizens from outside the EU would rise from 3 per cent to 15 per cent.
Mitsotakis said the measures would respect the budget commitments agreed with Brussels, arguing that the 2026 budget was again on course to beat its targets.
The speech was met by union-led demonstrations in Thessaloniki, with police putting attendance at more than 25,000. Protesters called for steeper wage increases and immediate relief from food and energy costs.
Mitsotakis’ New Democracy party won 40.5 per cent of the vote in 2023 but has since slipped to below 30 per cent in opinion polls, amid persistent inflation and a run of corruption allegations. A general election must be held by 2027.
