Tiago Petinga / Lusa
The Minister of Education, Science and Innovation, Fernando Alexandre
From now on, young higher education graduates who are not yet benefiting from the return of the bribes will have to choose between this support or the young IRS.
The government has two news for newly graduated young people: a good and a bad one.
The good thing is that they will be able to receive the qualifications appreciation award. The bad thing is that, If they receive it, they will not be able to benefit from IRS Young.
“Applications already approved will continue to be paid, as announced by the Tax Authority. However, in the new requests, the graduates will choose between the Salary Award and the Youth IRS,” said the Minister of Education, Science and Innovation, on Tuesday, said on Tuesday, said, Fernando Alexandre.
The salary prize of valorization of qualifications corresponds to the return of the bribes paid by the Young people up to 35 years old who reside and work in Portugaland that have completed their degree or master’s degree in public higher education institutions, private, national or foreign, in 2023 or earlier, provided that there is less time than the number of years of the course.
He was approved by the government led by António Costa in 2023 and it was in the State Budget (OE) to 2024.
However, the OE for 2025 made no mention of this mechanism and for several months that the government portal, where the requests are submitted, states that “No new requests are being accepted” And that “the deadline for submitting orders in 2025 has not yet been announced”, generating doubts about the continuity of the measure.
Considering that “the grassroots conception of the wage prize is wrong and not effective”, the government then decided that young graduates who want to benefit from the measure will have to abdicate from IRS Young.
The prize corresponds to the annual payment of 697 euros for a degree and 1,500 euros for a master’s degree during the period equivalent to the duration of the course.
For example, in the case of a three -year degree, the young man receives three annual awards of 697 euros, which could accumulate with the young IRS if it met the requirements.
Young people who applied the award for valuing qualifications in 2024 will continue to receiver The remaining payments as expected, may also benefit from IRS Young.
The second annual payment, which should have been made by the end of July, will be paid at the end of the second week of Septemberaccording to the Tax and Customs Authority (AT) on Monday.
Government does not want to pay “privileges”
Also on the afternoon of Monday, Fernando Alexandre announced the.
The value of the degrees of the degrees, which has not changed since 2020 and will pass 697 for 710 euros.
Later, in an interview with, the Minister of Education rejected that the increase in the value of the bribes gives a “wrong sign” in relation to higher education, stressing that will not go back in the defrosting of the tuition feeseven if you face contestation.
Fernando Alexandre pointed to the fact that there is a great inequality of access to higher education, considering that reducing bribes “It would be to put the whole society to pay the teaching of those who had the privilege of attending higher education and this is regressive”.
“The PS wants universities to depend exclusively on the government. It has an anacronic view, lives outside the world and has no idea what are conditions for a competitive university system,” he compared.
