French Assembly approves student grant increases and changes to elderly allowance

The French National Assembly has approved a bill to revalue student grants, a measure aimed at better supporting higher education students. The bill, initially proposed by the GDR group (communists and overseas territories), seeks to index grant amounts annually to at least match inflation. It also proposes an "annualization" of payments, meaning grants would be disbursed over 12 months instead of the current 10.

Soumya Bourouaha, a deputy, argued that the current system of social grants for students "no longer fulfills its historical role" of democratizing higher education. She highlighted that student living costs have risen by nearly 30% since 2013, while the value of grants has not been automatically adjusted. The proposed changes were adopted with near-unanimous support from voting deputies, including the left-wing groups and the National Rally. However, deputies from Renaissance, Horizons, LR, and UDR abstained, citing concerns over the estimated public cost of over 500 million euros, a point echoed by Minister Philippe Baptiste (Higher Education).

In addition to student grants, the Assembly also advanced a separate bill concerning the Solidarity Allowance for the Elderly (Aspa). This allowance, which replaced the minimum old-age pension in 2006, supplements the pensions of retirees aged 65 and over with low incomes. It currently benefits around 750,000 individuals, according to Minister Jean-Pierre Farandou (Labor and Solidarity). The current system allows the state to recover Aspa funds from an individual's estate if its net value exceeds a certain threshold (108,586 euros for a single person in mainland France).

This recovery mechanism leads to a significant rate of non-recourse, with over 300,000 eligible elderly individuals reportedly renouncing the allowance annually, according to rapporteur Émeline K/Bidi. The newly adopted text introduces a "housing allowance" to reduce the Aspa amount for homeowners or those housed free of charge, thereby eliminating the estate recovery in such cases. The government estimates this housing allowance to be a few dozen euros.