Overview
- The draft plan would exclude childless recipients of RSA and certain unemployed people from the year‑end Christmas bonus starting in 2026.
- Funding for the bonus would fall to about €261.5 million from €466.5 million in 2025, a cut close to 45% according to the budget documents.
- Roughly 2.2 million people currently receive the payment, which is about €150 for a single person and €228 for a couple without children, with higher amounts for families.
- The 2025 bonus remains scheduled under existing rules, and any change would depend on parliamentary debate and adoption in the Assemblée nationale.
- Minister Jean‑Pierre Farandou defends the measure on fiscal grounds and says he is open to revisions if deputies find equivalent savings, as opposition parties and charities condemn the proposal’s impact on isolated and elderly people.