How businesses and workers affected by the Covid-19 pandemic are being helped

Payment month by the state will be December for hundreds of thousands workers, self-employed, self-employed, businesses and property owners affected by the pandemic. Disbursements will be made to compensation for those who have been put on work stoppage, the refundable down payment, and the payment of 1/2 of the property owners' loss from the mandatory property reduction.

In particular, at the end of last week the last payments of the «repayable advance 3», with the total number of beneficiaries in this cycle amounting to 101,430, to whom direct financial assistance totalling €1.507 billion was paid. In the first 15 days of this month, the online platform for the ’repayable advance 4« of €1 billion is expected to open, followed by the »repayable advance 5« of €700 million. The objective of the economic staff is to have disbursed the amounts from these two rounds - in which the 50% will be non-reimbursable, by the end of the year - in order to bring the support to enterprises by the end of the year through the five rounds of the financial scheme to over €5 billion, taking into account the €3.369 billion of the first three rounds.

According to the data available to the General Accounting Office, 60% of Greek companies can apply for and receive a state loan in the last two cycles of the «refundable advance».

In the meantime, from 27 November to 3 December, compensation (in proportion to the days of suspension) will be paid to workers of companies closed by state order, while around 20 December the 800 euro allowance will be paid to workers suspended in November.

Specifically:
*From 3 to 30 November are set suspended the employment contracts of workers in enterprises whose operation was suspended by state order on 3/11/2020 in specific Regional Units, before the announcement of the general measures for the whole territory. In this case the worker will receive 747 euros (calculation of 800 euros for 28 days of suspension).

* From 7 November or any other date of the beginning of the measure to suspend the operation of state-owned enterprises (e.g. hairdressing salons) until 30 November, the employment contracts of workers in enterprises whose operation was suspended by the state after the announcement of the general measures for the whole territory are suspended. For businesses that were compulsorily closed from the first day of the lockdown, the worker will receive €640. For hairdressing salons and beauty centres that close from tomorrow, the worker will receive €587 (calculation of €800 for 22 days of suspension).

At the same time, the government is proceeding with a new way of compensating about 400,000 property owners for the compulsory «haircut» of rents from the November rentals. From the model of offsetting against future tax liabilities, which had provoked opposition from the owners, it was decided, as compensation, the 50% of the loss they suffer from the «cut» rent in their income to be credited by the state to their bank accounts.

For example, a landlord receives monthly rents of €2,000. With the 40% rent «haircut», he has an income loss of EUR 800. With the new model, he is entitled to a compensation of 400 euros, which will be credited to his bank account. To receive the amount of compensation corresponding to the November loss, the beneficiary landlord will have to submit electronically to TAXISnet a declaration of income loss (Covid declaration) for November. The compensation will be paid on December.

Finally, with regard to the Christmas bonus, which will have to be paid by employers from 21 to 31 December, the State - as with the Easter bonus - will pay to businesses the proportion corresponding to the period during which the workers were suspended, but calculated on the amount of EUR 534 and not on the worker's nominal salary.

Ad. Georgiades: workers will get their gift and businesses will be supported by the government to be able to give the gift

«We know that the second lockdown causes a lot of pressure on businesses so the government must give them the opportunity to endure,» the Development and Investment Minister said. Adonis Georgiadis in an interview with the television station Skye.
He noted that it is certain that workers will get their gift and businesses will be supported by the government to be able to give the gift.

Among other things, he stressed that the loans without pre-settlement will be ready in the next two weeks and that the model of Karditsa will be followed for Samos as well. At the same time, Mr Georgiades stressed that the interest subsidy will be paid as usual and that there will be no interest subsidies. suspension of payments to those affected.

The minister added that the discipline we show will determine when our economy will open and the only thing that should concern citizens is to comply with the measures. Furthermore, he pointed out that half of the money of the property owners will go directly into their accounts as a practical support from the government.