Data on the repayment process of the insurance contribution debts that were included in installment plans and have been certified by the KEAO, the Deputy Minister of Labor and Social Affairs, Panagiotis Tsakloglou, forwarded to the Parliament, following a question submitted by ND MP Maximos Charakopoulos.
According to the data of the 1st quarterly progress report of the year 2022 of the KEAO:
* The active arrangements in the fixed arrangement (12 installments) of Law 4152/2013 during the 1st quarter of 2022 compared to the 4th quarter of 2021, increased by 109.21% and the adjusted amount by 56.43%, of a total amount 457 million euros. The amount of the already completed arrangements amounts to 850 million euros, while the lost arrangements amount to approximately 7 billion euros.
* Active regulations in the regulation of the 72 installments of Law 4756/2021 during the 1st quarter of 2022 compared to the 4th quarter of 2021, increased by 441.33% and the regulated amount by 1,511.35%, which amounts to a total of to 680 million euros.
* The lost adjustments in the regulation of the 120 installments of Law 4611/2019 during the 1st quarter of 2022 in relation to the 4th quarter of 2021 increased by 162.44% and the regulated amount by 91.60%. In total, active arrangements amount to EUR 2.5 billion, while arrangements totaling EUR 467 million have already been completed and arrangements totaling EUR 2.4 billion have been lost.
From the same report, it appears that 61% of the total receipts of the KEAO during the 1st quarter of 2022, i.e. an amount of 239,429,050 euros, out of the total collected amount of 395,398,705 euros, comes from arrangements.
Mr. Harakopoulos, in the question he had addressed to the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs, had pointed out that there are citizens, mainly farmers and professionals, who have not been able to pay their insurance contributions to the EFKA on time and in full in recent years . The advance of the pandemic created unforeseen situations and shocks that caused upheavals in the financial situation of many professionals and, consequently, caused debts to the EFKA, which have been confirmed for collection at the KEAO (Insurance Debt Collection Center). However, the optimal possibility provided by the KEAO for repaying the debts is in 12 installments. According to the debtors, the amounts resulting from the monthly distribution of their debts in 12 installments, plus the current monthly insurance contributions, cannot be covered at a time when the introduced precision in energy has caused a domino of appreciations and is testing the financial endurance of the average family, Mr. Harakopoulos mentioned and noted that the debtors also include citizens who are heading towards the end of their working life, who express their strong concerns because if they cannot keep their debts under control, they will face a problem in their impending retirement. Therefore, they ask the State to proceed with facilitations and give the possibility to repay their debts in more installments, following the example of ENFIA, as this is to the benefit of both themselves and the State.
Based on the aforementioned, the ND MP called on the Minister of Labor and Social Affairs to inform the Parliament if he intends to consider the possibility of increasing the number of installments provided for the repayment of the confirmed insurance debts to the KEAO.
In his response, the Deputy Minister of Labor and Social Affairs, Panagiotis Tsakloglou, states that the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs, in view of the difficult economic and health situation and taking into account the decrease in the turnover of self-employed professionals and farmers, and therefore the great difficulty them to cope with their financial obligations, enacted the provisions of Law 4798/2021 (68 A’) for the re-regulation of their debts to the entities included in the e-EFKA. Specifically, with the provisions of articles 259 and 260 of the above law, the issue of the debts of the prospective pensioners to all the entities included in the e-EFKA was regulated on a new basis. “With these provisions, the amount that can be owed by the insured who submit a pension application is unified and increased, differing only in terms of the debt limit to the former OGA, which also increases”, points out Mr. Tsakloglou and mentions in particular that, the pension is paid, as long as the total amount owed to the e-EFKA, from all kinds of insurance contributions, debts from the recognition of fictitious insurance time, additional fees and other charges, is not greater than 20,000 euros (against 15,000 euros for debts to the former EBRD, which was valid under the previous regime). Especially with regard to debts arising only from being covered by the insurance of the former OGA, the pension is paid as long as the amount due does not exceed the limit of 6,000 euros (against 4,000 euros that applied under the previous regime). The different limit for the debts to the pr. OGA has been set due to the lower insurance contributions paid by farmers compared to the contributions of the rest of the entities included in the e-EFKA. Also, with the provisions of article 260 of the aforementioned law, the regulation that provided for a more specific regulation for the debts of the former OGA is repealed, which are now part of the single method of settlement that applies to all entities included in the eEFKA. The above amounts of debt are offset or withheld from the pension amounts in equal monthly installments which cannot be more than 60″.
Regarding the current debt settlement schemes, the Deputy Minister of Labor and Social Affairs reminds that they are the following:
* Fixed settlement of debts of subpar. IA1 of paragraph IA of the first article of Law 4152/2013 (12 installments).
* Reorganization procedure, in accordance with article 99 of the Bankruptcy Code, as applicable, which concerns only legal entities with bankruptcy capacity. With regard to the provisions of Law 4738/2020 (Α΄207), as applicable, an application for out-of-court settlement of debts may be submitted electronically to the Special Secretariat for Private Debt Management (EGDIX) using the Electronic Platform for Out-of-Court Debt Settlement every natural or legal person with bankruptcy capacity. In particular, natural persons as well as legal persons pursuing a financial purpose have bankruptcy capacity. Bankruptcy capacity can also be attributed to legal entities under private law that do not pursue an economic purpose, but carry out an economic activity.
“In general, we must not forget that the payment of insurance contributions is in no way voluntary and of minor importance. On the contrary, the timely payment of insurance contributions by the insured ensures the ability of EFKA to meet its obligations to the insured and pensioners , as any gaps are covered by the already burdened taxpayer. That is, the timely payment of contributions, above all else, is a practical manifestation of intergenerational solidarity,” says Mr. Tsakloglou and adds that “the constant request for more and more favorable regulations does not contributes to the creation of a culture of compliance which is what is required for the sustainability of the insurance system”.
SOURCE: APE-ME
Source: Capital
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