More EFKA services online
The Single Social Security Entity (EFKA) aims to leave its adolescence behind this year and grow into a mature fund with full online services. Its management aspires to automate the issue of pensions and ensure that a series of important services can be conducted electronically, following the huge progress recorded over the last couple of years.
There are already 53 online services supplies on e-EFKA, serving thousands of employees, employers, pensioners, self-employed professionals, farmers and accountants.
Today it is estimated that an average of 1.1 million transactions are conducted electronically every day between insured professionals or retirees and EFKA, and the latter’s management aspires to take that average rate to between 1.5 million and 2 million per day. That will also reduce daily trips to and from EFKA branches and free up staff from having to be physically present at the branches every day and allow them to proceed with the backlog of applications.
As Labor Minister Kostis Hatzidakis has said, the aim is to have all core services provided to people exclusively online soon, including online appointments, social security clearance issue etc. Combined with the successful operation of the 1555 EFKA hotline, the entity expects to meet the minister’s demand for a modern and satisfactory service.
The online services to be added, tended to by EFKA’s deputy director Alexandros Varveris, will include the automatic submission and issue of all pensions, main and auxiliary. By June the social security fund plans to implement the electronic issue of disability pensions, auxiliary pensions (first old-age pensions and then bereavement benefits), as well as the online application and payment of temporary illness or injury benefits for all insured individuals.
Also, within the first half of the year, hundreds of thousands of freelancers will get the chance to complete the voluntary social security application without having to visit an EFKA branch.
EFKA also intends to become autonomous in its online operation, without needing to rely on Intrasoft, the company that for decades has been the Greek social security apparatus’ dominant supplier of software development and amendment.
