What is the “Youth Pass” Programme?
The “Youth Pass” Programme is a means to encourage and introduce young people to cultural and touristic activities, to strengthen the domestic cultural and tourist sector, as well as to familiarise young people with using electronic transactions. It was introduced by Law 5045/2023 (A 136) and it is governed by Joint Ministerial Decision No. 169/2023 (Government Gazette 5420/Β/14-09-2023), hereinafter referred to as “JMD”.
The Project’s total budget amounts to €31,231,400.00.
Who are the potential beneficiaries of the Youth Pass?
The beneficiaries of the Youth Pass, on an annual basis, are any natural persons who are tax residents of Greece and who had turned eighteen (18) or nineteen (19) years old by December 31st of the calendar year preceding their application, but who have not yet turned twenty (20) years old by the same date.
What are the benefits of the Youth Pass Programme?
The applicants for the Youth Pass financial assistance, who have turned eighteen (18) years old by December 31st of the calendar year preceding their application, will receive €150.00 in the form of a digital debit card during the year when they submitted their application and, provided that they still meet the necessary requirements, they will receive an additional €150.00 in the following year.
The applicants for the Youth Pass financial assistance, who have turned nineteen (19) years old by December 31st of the calendar year preceding their application, will receive €150.00 in the form of a digital debit card during the year when they submitted their application.
What is the application period for the Youth Pass?
Specifically for the calendar year 2023, it is possible to submit applications on the website https://vouchers.gov.gr/youthpass between 9/11/2023 and 5/12/2023 for potential beneficiaries who turned eighteen (18) or nineteen (19) years old within the calendar year of 2022.
From the calendar year 2024 onwards, potential beneficiaries can apply to participate in the Programme from April 1st to May 15th of each year. (The start of the special application each year cannot take place on a Saturday, Sunday or other holiday, in which case it will be moved to the next working day).
The application may only be submitted once and it may not be re-submitted after the beneficiary reaches the age of 19. Payments to the beneficiaries for the following year will be carried out automatically, upon reviewing the conditions for participation in the Programme.
How are Youth Pass applications submitted?
A prerequisite for the beneficiary to receive the financial aid is to submit an application via the relevant App, using the credentials of the General Secretariat of Information Systems for Public Administration (taxisnet) on the website https://vouchers.gov.gr/youthpass.
In order to complete the process, the potential beneficiary must be registered in the National Communication Register (NCR), so as to verify their mobile phone number.
After logging into the App, beneficiaries must fill in their contact details in the corresponding fields, particularly their e-mail address and mobile phone number; then, they must select their preferred credit institution for the issuance of the Youth Pass digital debit card, and request the issuance of the digital debit card and the crediting of the relevant amount.
For more information, please refer to Article 3 of the JMD.
Which financial institutions can issue a digital debit card?
VIVA WALLET, EUROBANK and ALPHABANK.
It is not necessary for the beneficiary to be a customer of the above institutions for them to issue the digital debit card.
Can I cancel/edit my application?
If you have not yet pressed the green “Submit” button, you may edit the data in the application.
Once an application has been definitively submitted, it cannot be edited or cancelled.
What is the expected timetable for the issuance of digital debit cards and the crediting of the Youth Pass financial aid to the cards?
The financial aid for all beneficiaries will be sent to the banking institutions to be credited on the digital debit cards once per year, until May 31st of each year.
Particularly for the first implementation within 2023, the above crediting will take place by December 10th, 2023.
The digital debit cards of the Youth Pass Programme will remain active for two (2) years, starting on the month following their issuance. After the lapse of this period, it will not possible to carry out transactions using these cards.
For more information, please refer to Article 5 of the JMD.
Which businesses accept the Youth Pass digital card?
The Programme’s digital debit card can be used to make purchases or receive services from businesses that are active in the fields of culture, tourism and transport. Specifically:
Merchant’s category (MCC) | Description of activities |
3000 to 3350 | airlines, air transport |
3351 to 3500 | car rentals |
3501 to 3999 | hotels / accommodation |
4111 | transport |
4112 | rail passenger transport |
4121 | taxi services |
4131 | bus services |
4411 | sea / coastal water transport |
4457 | boat rentals |
4511 | other air transport |
4582 | airports / terminals |
4722 | travel agencies |
4789 | other transport |
5551 | rental of vessels |
5561 | rental of camper vans etc. |
5815 | e-books, movies, music |
5942 | bookstores |
7011 | other hotels / accommodation |
7032 | recreational and sports camps |
7033 | camping |
7512 | other motor vehicle rentals |
7832 | cinema |
7911 | dancing establishments, schools, studios |
7922 | theatres, ticket agencies |
7929 | orchestras and bands |
7991 | exhibitions and tourist attractions, museums |
7997 | fitness studio services |
7999 | other recreational services |
The digital debit card is used exclusively in electronic transactions or through a device that supports contactless transaction technology, that is, through a website or an electronic platform which allows the direct debiting of the virtual digital debit card upon filling in the relevant details or by using the application on an electronic device that supports contactless transactions through the wireless connection of two devices, by way of simple contact or by positioning them close to each other (NFC – Near Field Communication technology).
The digital debit cards of the Youth Pass Programme will remain active for two (2) years, starting on the month following their issuance. After the lapse of this period, it will not possible to carry out transactions using these cards.
How to get into contact or submit queries in relation to the Programme?
In order to support the users of the information system, a help desk service is available for reporting and resolving issues and for providing instructions, by calling (+30) 210-2157518 and via e-mail:marketpass@ktpae.gr.
Useful links: vouchers.gov.gr/youthpass