The Hungarian reversal of birthrate decline is unique, but the country is not out of the woods yet.Continue reading
“Family is very important to both Hungary and Serbia, which is why we want to strengthen it and take measures to promote childbearing,” Attila Beneda, Deputy State Secretary of the Ministry of Culture and Innovation, told Hungarian public media on Monday in Belgrade, following the international conference on family and demography entitled Serbia – Our Family.
The politician said that Hungary has perhaps the most complex and detailed family support system in the world. In the field of demography, the Hungarian government has achieved great results in the last 12 years, and Serbia invited the Hungarian government to its conference on families because of the good examples and the fruitful and close relations.
Attila Beneda drew attention to the fact that during the Serbian event, “Hungary was repeatedly praised for the fact that we were able to set a good example for them, that they are already trying to introduce some of our practices, and we managed to jointly confirm the intention to exchange good practices and experiences, as the demographic challenge faced by Serbia and Hungary is similar.”
In his presentation, the Deputy State Secretary outlined the Hungarian government’s social philosophy approach to family policy. He explained why Hungary “considers families to be the most important building blocks of the nation and what measures we are trying to take to help them.” He added that
the possibility had been raised of setting up a strategic working group in which Hungary and Serbia could discuss population and family policy issues.
“Cooperation is key, it is very important to observe each other’s good practices, as Europe is facing a demographic winter,” he said. He explained that Western countries are trying to solve demographic issues from a different angle, while for Hungary and Serbia the family represents a great value, and therefore they want to strengthen it.
In many respects, our situations are similar, and the unprecedented good relations that now exist between Serbia and Hungary provide every basis for strengthening and continuing this cooperation,”
the politician concluded.
The cooperation has already begun, as President Novák has invited Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic to be the first to join the Network of Family-friendly Presidents, which was set up to bring together leaders of countries who are committed to family policy.
In Hungary, currently, there are many measures helping families. The baby-expecting loan is probably the most popular form of family support; it can be applied for as a free-use loan of up to 10 million forints from banks.
When the first child is born, the loan becomes interest-free and repayments are suspended for three years.
When the second child is born, 30 percent of the debt is waived and repayments are suspended for a further three years. With the third child, the entire debt is canceled. This pro-family measure is currently available until the end of 2024.
Another important measure is the personal income tax exemption for mothers under 30, which was introduced at the beginning of this year. This benefit is available to mothers over 25 and under 30 who have children born after January 1, 2023, with the tax exemption starting from the 91st day of pregnancy. The benefit only applies to over-25s, because due to an earlier decision, young people under 25 are currently exempt from personal income tax. The maximum amount of the tax relief this year is HUF 75,000 (EUR 190) per month, meaning that this is the amount by which young mothers’ salaries could increase.
Moreover, there is also the family housing support (CSOK) and the rural family housing support (falusi CSOK), both helping families buy homes. These are also available until the end of 2024, along with a VAT refund for newly built homes.
Featured photo via Pixabay
