Parliamentary agreement: More than two million Danes will receive a “government food voucher” of up to 5,000 kroner within these categories.

According to DR, the Danish government has announced a final agreement on a tax-free food voucher for citizens particularly affected by rising food prices, following nearly a month of negotiations, as reported by TV 2.

Announcement of the agreement from the Ministry of Finance

The source reported that the government reached an agreement Tuesday morning in cooperation with the Unity List (Enhedslisten) and the Socialist People's Party (SF), and presented the details during a press conference held at the Ministry of Finance. Read more after the announcement.

Funding worth 4.5 billion kronor

According to TV 2, the government has allocated a total of 4.5 billion kronor to finance the food check, which will be disbursed during the months of May and June to specific groups of citizens, and will be completely tax-exempt.

Check cashing dates

Retirees, students and social assistance recipients are scheduled to receive the food check during the month of May, while families with children will receive the amounts during the month of June, according to sources.

Categories eligible for support

The source explained that the food check targets four main categories: families with children, recipients of government pensions, the unemployed, and students living away from their parents' homes and registered in the SU education support system.

Government statement regarding the purpose of the check

Finance Minister Nicolai Wammen said that this support does not solve all economic problems, but it comes at an important time for many families, stressing that the goal is to help the groups most affected by rising food prices, according to TV 2.

Details of amounts and beneficiary categories

The food check plan includes the following amounts:

• Families with children
  Families in which the annual income of each parent is less than about 500,000 kroner receive 5,000 kroner.
  Families where one parent's income exceeds this threshold while the other parent's income is less than it receive 2,500 kronor.
• State retirees
  State pensioners whose cash savings are less than 350,000 kroner receive 2,500 kroner.
• recipients of public aid
  Citizens who have received a general allowance by November 2025 will receive 2,500 kronor.
• students
  Students living away from their parents' homes and enrolled in the SU education support scheme receive 1,000 kronor.

More than 2 million beneficiaries

TV 2 confirmed that more than two million people in Denmark will benefit from this food check, making it one of the broadest direct support programs launched by the government in recent years.

Limited political support for the agreement

The source indicated that the agreement would only be supported by the SF and Enhedslisten parties, in addition to the three government parties, after several other political forces withdrew from the negotiations in recent days.

Criticism due to the broad scope of support

The withdrawing parties justified their position by stating that the food voucher is distributed to a very broad segment of citizens, which reduces the size of the financial impact felt by the beneficiaries, according to TV 2.

A political reading of the timing of the decision

Hans Redder, political editor at TV 2, said that rising food prices are one of the most influential issues affecting voters' attitudes ahead of the parliamentary elections expected later this year.

Compared to previous experience

Ryder added that the government had achieved electoral gains after disbursing the "heating checks" before the 2022 elections, despite the problems that accompanied the implementation, expressing Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen's hope that the food check would achieve a similar effect.

The finance minister defends the agreement's wording.

Nikolay Wammen confirmed that he takes full responsibility for the agreement, stressing that the priority was to help retirees, students and the unemployed, as well as to support families with children.

Economic analysis of the impact of the decision

Michael Svarer, an economics professor at Aarhus University, said the direct impact of the food check would be limited at the individual level, but noted in an interview with TV 2 that the full package of government economic measures could make a tangible difference.

Accompanying measures to reduce stress

He explained that these measures include reducing the electricity tax, providing tax breaks, in addition to the food voucher, especially with the start of the decline in food prices.

Food prices decline

According to TV2, food prices fell by 1.8 percent between November and December, marking a decline for five consecutive months.