The absorption of the two vouchers to boost demand for the connection of households and businesses with fiber optics (FTTH) in order to obtain a faster internet connection is progressing at different speeds.
For the Gigabit Voucher, 61,730 applications were made and 57,219 vouchers were issued by 31.1.2025, while for Smart Readiness only 1,972 applications were submitted.
The course of the two vouchers does not surprise the telecommunications market. Smart Readiness, which subsidizes the “smart readiness” of 120,000 buildings in the country, through the creation of digital infrastructure (mainly vertical cabling with fiber optics), has been characterized as difficult to implement as, among other things, it requires consultation and cooperation of the residents of an apartment building.
Moreover, since the FTTH network has arrived from a provider outside the building, it is easy to proceed with its cabling, if even one of the tenants requests it to be connected.
In the meantime, a budget of 100 million euros has been secured for Smart Readiness from the Recovery Fund and the action is linked to conditionality (if this specific budget is not absorbed within the agreed timeframe, it will also affect other programs).
On the contrary, the Gigabit Voucher action (with a total budget of 80 million euros), with which a total of 379 thousand households and small and medium-sized enterprises will be subsidized with 200 euros to obtain an internet connection with a speed of at least 250 Mbps, is progressing relatively satisfactorily.
Based on the above, the problem that the co-responsible ministries of Digital Governance and National Economy and Finance will likely be called upon to resolve is the transition to the second phase of the two actions, if the planned Smart Readiness connections are not made during the first phase, which is currently underway.
It is recalled that based on the Joint Ministerial Decision, the Gigabit Voucher is linked to Smart Readiness and will be implemented in 4 phases.
During the first phase, 200,000 Gigabit vouchers will be available and at least 60,000 Smart Readiness must be absorbed. During the second phase, if the first is closed, 100,000 Gigabit and 30,000 Smart Readiness and in the third and fourth phases, 50,000 Gigabit and 15,000 Smart Readiness.
