This Regulation establishes the Social Climate Fund for the period from 2026 to 2032.
The Social Climate Fund shall provide financial support to Member States for the measures and investments included in their Social Climate Plans (the ‘Plans’). To be eligible for funding, each Member State should submit to the Commission a Social Climate Plan (the ‘Plan’). The Plans should be submitted by 30 June 2025 so that they can be given careful and timely consideration. The Plans should have an investment component that promotes the long-term goal of reducing fossil fuels reliance while incorporating measures, including temporary direct income support, to mitigate adverse effects on income in the shorter term.
The Social Climate Fund will be funded in part through the EU Emissions Trading Scheme revenues.
The measures and investments supported by the Fund shall benefit households, micro-enterprises and transport users, which are vulnerable and particularly affected by the inclusion of greenhouse gas emissions from buildings and road transport within the scope of the EU Emissions Trading Scheme, in particular households in energy poverty or households in transport poverty.
The Directive (EU) 2023/1791 on energy efficiency brings new definitions of ‘energy poverty’ amending the Social Climate Fund.
