Argentine Congress's pension and disability law increase is rejected by Milei
Argentine President Vetoes Pension Hike and Disability Law, Sparking Controversy
Argentine President Javier Milei has vetoed a pension increase and a disability law approved by Congress in July 2025, a move that has generated significant controversy and sparked protests across the country.
The vetoed pension hike aimed to address widespread poverty among Argentina's 7.4 million retirees, most of whom live below the poverty line. The vetoed measures would have increased retirement pensions by 7.2%, raised the monthly retirement income from about 314,300 pesos (approx. $228) plus a frozen bonus of 70,000 pesos to a somewhat higher level, although still below the poverty threshold estimated at 1.2 million pesos (approx. $873).
Critics, including the Buenos Aires Elderly Ombudsman and opposition legislators, have characterised the veto as a "brutal blow" and "cruelty" that worsens hunger, exclusion, and abandonment among the most vulnerable seniors in Argentina.
Milei justified the veto by asserting the pension increase threatened fiscal equilibrium and framed it politically as a desperate act by Congress. He also pledged to sue Congress if his veto was overturned, emphasising his commitment to austerity to control deficit spending ahead of the October midterm elections.
In addition to vetoing the pension hike, Milei also blocked related social protection legislation, including a law declaring a national disability emergency. The vetoed disability law would have established a compatibility regime with formal jobs, provided that income did not exceed two minimum wages. It would have also guaranteed basic benefits, transportation, and comprehensive care for the disabled community.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) had warned that the vetoed pension hike and disability law would generate additional public spending of 1.5% of Argentina's GDP. The IMF deemed the vetoed laws as "costly initiatives" that emerge in an electoral pressure context.
The vetoed actions are expected to initiate legislative negotiations. The legislative negotiations aim to prevent the opposition from overturning Milei's vetoes with a two-thirds majority in both chambers. Milei's veto of the pension hike and disability law could put at risk Argentina's $20 billion rescue package signed in April.
The controversy surrounding Milei's veto has led to spontaneous protests and unified opposition from feminists, retirees, unions, and other social groups, who argue the government's austerity measures disproportionately harm the elderly and disabled while casting these groups merely as government expenditures to be cut.
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- The international community is closely following the controversy surrounding Argentine President Javier Milei's veto of a pension increase and disability law, viewing it as a critical point in the realm of policy-and-legislation and politics.
- The vetoed pension hike and disability law, which would have provided benefits to Argentina's seniors and disabled community, have resulted in general-news headlines about the sensitive issue of social protection in the country.
