The one-time 6,000 Mden (slightly under EUR 100) stimulus checks that were part of the latest coronavirus relief and government funding package have been distributed to over 90 percent of eligible citizens, according to the Macedonian Banking Association.
Eligible for the relief checks were low-income citizens, retirees, seniors on welfare, people aged 16-29, single parents, children with no parents or caregivers, artists, culture workers, film workers, and performers.
In a press release, the MBA says banks have transferred 90 percent of the funds into eligible citizens’ bank accounts through Dec. 25, 2020.
The reason the remaining 10 percent had not been transferred, the MBA points out, is that the government was late in adopting changes to the Law on Financial Support so the deadline could be legally extended.
A government spokesman Sunday had called on banks to be more tolerant and distribute the stimulus checks until New Year’s.
“Everyone will receive their 6,000-denar checks,” government spokesman Dushko Arsovski told a news conference, explaining that delays were caused by the Law on Financial Support passing in Parliament later than expected.
Still, Arsovski said the government was expecting that banks would fully distribute the funding intended to the most vulnerable categories of citizens.
The government’s fourth coronavirus relief package made available EUR 27,5 million to assist over 280,000 people.
