Overview

• The Constitutional Court ruled that fixing the public sector salary cap at €240,000 breached constitutional proportionality once its temporary crisis justification expired.
• As of the day after publication in the Official Gazette, the cap will return to the compensation level of the First President of the Court of Cassation, currently €313,080 gross annually.
• Any new salary ceiling must be set by a prime ministerial decree following prescribed consultation with parliamentary committees.
• The court’s declaration of unconstitutionality has no retroactive effect, so past salary reductions remain unchanged without back pay.
• The judgment underscores the need for a proportional and periodically reviewed compensation framework to safeguard judicial independence.