The Hungarian government remains committed to maintaining the 13th-month pension, Gergely Gulyas announced during the government’s weekly press briefing on Wednesday. The minister leading the Prime Minister’s Office emphasized that this additional pension remains an integral part of the Hungarian pension system, with the cabinet’s goal being to strengthen retirees’ purchasing power and protect them from economic difficulties.
Brussels and the opposition bent on abolishing it
The government's stance remains unchanged: the 13th-month pension will stay. However, according to Gulyas, both Brussels and the opposition, led by Tisza Party chief Peter Magyar, would eliminate this benefit. The current government reintroduced the extra monthly pension in 2021, after it was abolished in 2009 by Gordon Bajnai’s left-wing government.
Now, within Peter Magyar’s policy group, the idea of eliminating the 13th-month pension has resurfaced. In fact, some even suggest that pensions should not be distributed at all or that retirement benefits should be taxed.
The Bajnai government took it away from pensioners
In 2009, Gordon Bajnai justified the elimination of the 13th-month pension by citing Hungary’s economic difficulties. The then prime minister stated:
The elderly must also make sacrifices.
As a result, the left-wing government did not even pay the second installment for 2009, and from 2010 onward, the benefit was entirely abolished, writes Mandiner. At the same time, Bajnai’s government also eliminated the Swiss indexation system for pension adjustments, contrary to the belief of many who mistakenly attribute this decision to the Fidesz government.
Viktor Orban restored the 13th-month pension
The left-wing government’s austerity measures—including the abolition of the 13th-month pension, tax increases, and rising utility costs—placed retirees in a particularly difficult position. In 2010, Prime Minister Viktor Orban promised to restore the 13th-month pension, a commitment that was gradually fulfilled starting in 2021.
The government originally planned to fully reinstate the benefit by 2024,
but in 2022, pensioners already received a full 100% of the supplemental benefit.
Additionally, other support programs have been introduced to assist retirees, particularly those living in small towns and villages, who can also take advantage of home renovation support program.
