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One in three families on economic assistance receives a subsidy for electricity/Rent is leaving them out of the scheme

2026-04-13 12:39:00, Ekonomi CNA

One in three families on economic assistance receives a subsidy for

Only one in three families receiving economic assistance is also benefiting from the electricity subsidy, highlighting a large gap between the social protection scheme and the reality of the rental housing market in Albania.

According to the 2025 Annual Report of the State Social Service, 15,366 families, or 33% of the total families in the economic assistance scheme, received electricity compensation last year.

The institution itself admits that the low level of benefit is not necessarily related to a lack of need, but to documentary obstacles that stem mainly from the way vulnerable families live.

The biggest problem remains rental housing, where the energy contract is often not in the name of the family living in the apartment, but of the owner, or a formalized relationship with OSHEE is completely lacking.

The report highlights that families living in multi-family dwellings, a common phenomenon in both high-rent urban areas and extended families, are particularly excluded from the scheme. In these cases, the energy contract is in the name of the head of household, while other families, although in need, are unable to legally prove their right to the subsidy.

"The number of families benefiting from the EE subsidy in relation to the number of beneficiary families is low due to the lack of documentation required by legislation, such as contracts with OSHE for families living in rental housing and for those cases where the contract is not in the name of the head of the household and there are more than one couple living in one apartment, as well as in many families there are members who benefit from EE compensation from the pension scheme or as PWDs," the report states.

These data demonstrate how the housing crisis and the informality of the rental market are starting to produce direct social costs. In practice, the poorest families not only face the burden of rent, but also lose access to basic support such as energy bill compensation, precisely due to the lack of formalized contracts. /Monitor