Special Pension for People Injured in the Tempi Rail Accident and Families of the Victims (Art. 57, Law 5039/2023)

People left with a permanent disability of 50% or more by the Tempi rail accident of 28 February 2023, and the families of those who died, receive from 1/3/2023 a special pension equal to four times the full national pension (art. 57, Law 5039/2023). In 2026 the national pension is €446.87, so the special pension is €1,787.48 a month; it rises when the national pension rises.

For each person who died, the amount is shared as follows: - married or in a civil partnership, without children: all of it to the spouse or partner; - married or in a civil partnership, with children: half to the spouse or partner and the other half equally to the children; - widowed, divorced or unmarried, with children: equally to the children; - unmarried, widowed or divorced, without children: to the parents, in equal shares; - unmarried, without children and orphaned: equally to the siblings.

Children and siblings receive the pension until they come of age, or until they finish their studies and at the latest until 24, or for life if they are unmarried and unable to do any paid work with a disability of 50% or more. From 1/1/2026 unmarried children receive it until 24 (art. 43, Law 5313/2026). For the children of a widowed, divorced or unmarried person who died, and for siblings, the age limits do not apply for 10 years from the law's entry into force. The spouse's or partner's right does not depend on how long the marriage or partnership lasted. The disability of the injured is assessed at the time of the accident and within the following 6 months, by an opinion of the Supreme Army Health Committee (A.S.Y.E.).

The pension is tax-free and cannot be seized, does not count towards the income limits of any social or welfare benefit and is paid on top of any other pension or salary; only the health-care contribution is withheld.

Apply to Department E of the Income Policy Directorate of the General Accounting Office: by post or in person (Karageorgi Servias 10, 10562 Athens, 5th floor, office 501, 08:00–14:00) or by e-mail to dep.e@glk.gr. A family can make a joint application; for a minor child, the person with parental responsibility or guardianship applies. The injured ask in the application to be referred to the A.S.Y.E. The decision takes about 2 months; if the application is rejected, you can ask for a review or appeal to the Court of Audit.