Polish PM Tusk says govt approves 2024 mortgage payment holidays bill

WARSAW (Reuters) - The Polish government has approved a draft bill to extend payment holidays for mortgage holders for 2024, Prime Minister Donald Tusk said on Tuesday.

The payment holiday scheme, initially intended to help mortgage holders whose payments surged in 2022 and 2023 due to rising interest rates, will now include income criteria to enter the program.

"We decided to extend the program for those that took mortgages and now have troubles repaying them, we also decided to increase help for those that lost their jobs," Tusk told a news briefing.

Under the revised scheme, credit holidays will be available for two months from May 1 to June 30, and for one month in each the third and fourth quarters.

A suspension of loan repayments will be possible for loans below 1.2 million zloty ($301,288.01), and if the mortgage installment exceeds 30% of the household income, the government said.

($1 = 3.9829 zlotys)

(Reporting by Marek Strzelecki and Pawel Florkiewicz; Editing by Sharon Singleton)