Riga Reduces Housing Benefits: Winter is Over, Now Poor Riga Residents Should Have It Easier 0 7

What is significant: for those who already have this benefit assigned, it will be automatically paid out in a smaller amount.

Meanwhile, the number of recipients of support for paying utility bills in Riga has noticeably increased in the first 4 months of this year. In April, this benefit was assigned to 11,941 people.

Why the Coefficients Have Decreased

"The Riga Social Service is returning to lower coefficients, which will directly affect the amount of payments for support recipients," said Antra Gabre, project coordinator of the external communications department of the Riga municipality.

As we remember, due to the cold winter and the rise in heating costs, from January 1 to April 30 of this year, increased coefficients were applied when calculating the housing benefit. This allowed for both an increase in the amount of the benefit and the number of people who could qualify for it.

As a result, in the first four months of this year, the Riga Social Service received 17,104 applications - both for the assignment of housing benefits and for their recalculation for the previous three months.

However, this was a temporary support measure. Starting May 2026, the previous - lower - coefficients will be applied again when calculating housing benefits.

What Are the Current Income "Ceilings"

The coefficients for calculating housing benefits after April 30, 2026, are as follows:

• for a single elderly person or a single person with a disability - coefficient 2.1;

• for a household consisting only of elderly people or people with disabilities - coefficient 1.7;

• for a household with children under 18 or adult individuals up to 24 years old, if they are studying or receiving education - coefficient 2;

• for other households - coefficient 1.3.

Housing benefits are calculated according to a specific formula taking into account:

• household income;

• guaranteed minimum income threshold (GMI);

• housing expenses.

Let us remind you: in 2026, the GMI threshold for the first and only person in the household is 187 euros, for other household members - 131 euros.

What Do the Amounts of 187 and 131 Euros Mean?

These are the guaranteed minimum income thresholds, that is, GMI.

If a family has no income at all, it can receive from the social service a GMI benefit of 187 euros for the first person and 131 euros for each subsequent family member. If the household has income but it is below the established threshold, the family will be supplemented with enough money so that each member still has a guaranteed minimum income.

The GMI must remain with the person AFTER paying all utility service costs.

Thus, many people with low incomes are also entitled to housing benefits.

For example, if we are talking about a single pensioner, then after paying utility bills, according to the formula, he should have 392.7 euros left at his disposal. This is the threshold below which one can request benefits.

The calculation is as follows: 187 euros (GMI threshold) × 2.1 (coefficient established by law) = 392.7 euros.

What should be taken into account: if this single gentleman has a sufficiently high income so that after paying utility services he has this amount left for other needs, then he is not entitled to housing benefits.

If, however, the income of the single pensioner is not high enough, then the social service will pay him housing benefits in such an amount that this person will have 392.7 euros left.

Why Are Benefits Most Often Denied?

As A. Gabre explains, the most common reasons for denying housing benefits are:

• the presence of cash savings or property,

• providing incomplete information about income (including not providing bank account statements);

• the absence of employment for a capable person and their NOT registration with the State Employment Agency as unemployed.