The Cabinet on December 6 approved the state social insurance budget law for 2017. The document provides for balanced revenues and expenses of 16 410 670 lei each, an increase of over 9% on 2016, IPN reports. The general resources of the state social insurance budget will represent 66.3%, while the transfers from the state budget 33.7%.

The expenditure of the 2017 state social insurance budget was estimated based on the indexation of the social insurance pensions by 6.8%, introduction of the paternity benefit, rise in the lump-sum childbirth allowance to 5,300 lei for each child, introduction of the monthly support child benefit up to the age of three for twins or more children born at the same time to the same mother, and others.

In the same meeting, the Cabinet agreed the bill to amend the state social insurance budget law for 2016. The costs for social welfare were increased by 20 342 lei following the institution of a new benefit, the paternity one, and the rise in costs for providing cold-month allowances to particular categories of people, which are covered with money from the state budget.

As a result of the made amendments, the revenues of the 2016 state social insurance budget will total 15 049 048 lei, by over 18 million lei more than the initially projected ones, while the expenditure will come to 15 079 458 lei.