Cyprus relies on non-means-tested support in welfare mix, says Eurostat
Total expenditure on social protection benefits across the European Union amounted to €4.6 trillion in 2023, with Cyprus demonstrating a clear preference for direct cash payments within its €6.09 billion system, according to Eurostat.
The statistical office reported that almost half of the EU’s total social protection expenditure (46.9 per cent) was allocated to old age and survivors’ functions, which are largely composed of pensions.
The sickness and health care function accounted for the second-largest share at 29.6 per cent of all benefits.
The remaining expenditure was spread across family and children benefits at 8.7 per cent, disability benefits at 7.1 per cent, unemployment benefits at 3.9 per cent, social exclusion benefits at 2.5 per cent, and housing benefits at 1.4 per cent.
Expenditure on social protection benefits is delivered either in cash payments or in kind, and may be either means-tested, meaning dependent on income levels, or non-means-tested, available to all members of a specific population group.
The majority of all social protection benefits in the EU, 64.7 per cent, was provided in the form of cash payments.
This cash total was split between 58.7 per cent being non-means-tested and 6.0 per cent being means-tested.
The remaining 35.3 per cent of benefits were delivered in kind, comprising 30.4 per cent that was non-means-tested and 4.9 per cent that was means-tested.
The share of cash benefits in the overall social protection benefits was highest in Italy at 76.4 per cent, Greece at 75.9 per cent, and Poland at 71.4 per cent.
By contrast, Sweden at 51.6 per cent, Ireland at 52.7 per cent, and Malta at 55.4 per cent registered the lowest shares of cash payments, as in-kind benefits were more prominent in those countries.
For Cyprus, total social protection benefits stood at €6.09 bn for 2023.
According to Eurostat data, total cash benefits amounted to €3.82 bn, while total benefits in kind reached €2.26 bn.
A detailed breakdown shows that the Cypriot system heavily relies on non-means-tested support, providing €5.46 bn in non-means-tested social protection benefits.
This includes €3.32 bn in non-means-tested cash benefits and €2.13 bn in non-means-tested benefits in kind.
For means-tested support, means-tested social protection benefits totalled €634.5 million.
Within this category, means-tested cash benefits reached €502.59m, while means-tested benefits in kind made up €131.9m.
This means that Cyprus allocates approximately 62.7 per cent of its social protection spending in cash, positioning it around the middle of the EU spectrum.
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