Economy 29 June 2023, 9:22am

Around 250,000 Hungarians could get an extra HUF 200,000 on their SZÉP cards this year

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The government decided earlier that this year, as an extra option, employers can pay a one-off HUF 200,000 on SZÉP cards, and the income thus provided under preferential tax conditions can be spent - temporarily - even on cold food. 24.hu estimates that 250,000 workers could receive extra benefits.

According to the government's decision, between 1 August 2023 and 31 December 2023, employers may transfer a one-off amount of up to HUF 200,000 to the SZÉP Card, which is considered a fringe benefit.

The government has also decided that, on a transitional basis, between 1 August 2023 and 31 December 2023, families can use the funds available on their SZÉP cards to buy cold food products (the regulation does not apply to alcoholic beverages and tobacco and processed tobacco substitutes), similar to the period between 1 February 2022 and 1 July 2022.

According to 24.hu, in May there were 4.7 million people in employment, of whom about 1.4-1.5 million could receive money from their employers on their SZÉP cards. According to the information provided by the four card issuers, a fraction of these users, up to 250,000 people, could be entitled to the extra HUF 200,000 - provided that their employer is willing to offer this one-off, tax-advantaged opportunity.