9,000 euros social benefits: People's Party criticizes new abuse

9,000 euros social benefits: People's Party criticizes new abuse

reports on the social benefits of up to 9,000 euros per month of a large Syrian family in Austria provide violent discussions. This family is new in the country and has so far not paid any contributions into the social system. Matthias Zauner, the state manager of the Niederösterreich People's Party, is critical and describes the situation as a "slap in the face" for working Austrians. He calls for a strict handling of the social benefits and emphasizes that the welfare state remains a security network for the needy and that there is no "self -service shop", how [ots.at] (https://www.ots.at/presseaus-sung/ots_20250523_ots0127/vpnoe-zauner-9000-im-monat-unser-zialsta--st--tin-self-control shop) reported.

In terms of this incident, Zauner calls for measures to combat abuse of social benefits. He emphasizes that steps in Lower Austria have already been taken to counteract such practices during his opinion in Vienna. Zauner speaks decisively against "false tolerance" and realizes that people who only come to Austria to enrich themselves are not welcome. He learns support from other politicians, such as Karl Mahrer, the chairman of the ÖVP in Vienna, who also sees the minimum security for families in Vienna and pleads for grading for multi -child families, as also reports krone.at.

criticism of the minimum security

The debate about social benefits is also taken up by the FPÖ, which is planning a special state parliament and has announced a request for no confidence. It is also important to mention that Tanja Wehsely from Volkshilfe Vienna defends minimum security and emphasizes that no child should be left behind. Social City Councilor Peter Hacker (SPÖ) explains that high social welfare payments are exceptional cases and refers to the current statistics that 982 families with five children receive minimum security in Vienna, with 860 of these families.

The number of families with six or more children increased by 63.5 percent from 2012 to 2022. While these discussions are conducted on the individual number of social benefits, the legal framework remains in the background due to changes to the Basic Social Assistance Act. This law leads to an introduction of maximum rates (maximum amounts) for social welfare and replaces previous minimum standards. The maximum social welfare for the alone and single parents in 2025 is around 1,209 euros, while couples receive 1,693 euros, such as [Social Ministry.gv.at] (https://www.social ministerium.gv.at/themen/socialhilfe-und-mindesticherung/- achievements.html).

New regulations in the social welfare system

The new system defines specific surcharges, for example for single parents, which are between around 145 euros and 36 euros per month and child depending on the number of children. In addition, a surcharge for people with disabilities is mandatory. There is also a covering determination that ensures that the total amount of cash benefits in a household community does not exceed 175 percent of the net compensation allowance rate. There are also minimum amounts of up to 20 percent of the net compensation allowance rate per person.

In addition, special groups of people can be excluded from the limitation. Under the new regulations, minimum security may be increased by 30 percent in order to cover higher housing costs. These fundamental changes in the social welfare system could have a significant impact on ongoing discussions and thus also influence politics in the coming months.