The salaries of judges and prosecutors have become another flashpoint between institutions after a 43% increase in the reference salary was requested. Beyond the figures, the debate has raised direct questions about the limits of authority, the burden on public finances and the gap between magistrates’ salaries and those of the rest of the administration.
How much judges and prosecutors are paid today
At present, the average salary of a judge or prosecutor, calculated with the coefficient and years of service, stands at 156,800 lek. In practice, the level varies significantly depending on the position and years of work.
A special prosecutor at SPAK with more than 10 years of experience is paid more than 446,056 lek. A prosecutor at the General Prosecution Office is paid 270,537 lek, a prosecutor at the Court of Appeal 243,325 lek with more than seven years of experience, while a first-instance judge is paid an average of 218,380 lek.
Under the current scheme, the salary increases every year by 2% of the reference salary based on years of service. This means that, even without new changes, the system has an internal mechanism for increases.
The 43% demand and the clash with Finance
The point that has ignited the debate is the request for a 65,600 lek increase in the reference salary for every judge, or about 43% more than the previous level. The High Judicial Council decided that the reference salary would rise from 156,800 lek to 222,425 lek, plus an additional 14,000 lek for qualification.
The clash deepened after payrolls were submitted to the treasury with this calculation, without Parliament’s approval. The Ministry of Finance did not execute them, maintaining the position that setting salaries is the competence of Parliament.
This is the core of the conflict: not only how much magistrates should be paid, but also who has the right to decide it and under what procedure.
How salaries would change under the new formula
If the 43% increase were implemented, salaries would move to another level. Special prosecutors would rise to 511,656 lek, prosecutors of the General Prosecution Office to 336,137 lek, prosecutors of the Court of Appeal to 308,925 lek and judges to 283,980 lek.
These figures push the debate beyond a technical salary correction. It is about a sharp increase at the top of the public pay pyramid, at a time when most of the administration and vital sectors remain far below.
Comparison with other salaries and the government’s argument
According to figures published by the government, the average salary in Albania is 92,150 lek per month. In the state sector the average is 107,090 lek, while in the private sector it is 86,094 lek.
Among the highest state positions, the President is paid 435,625 lek per month, the prime minister 413,000 lek and members of parliament, after a doubling in May, 310,250 lek. Police officers average from 100,000 to 156,000 lek, doctors and nurses from 92,500 to 143,500 lek, while teachers range from 73,000 to 107,000 lek.
Prime Minister Edi Rama has described the request as the highest in the region. According to his reference, Albania ranks fourth for the average salary of judges at 3,804 euros, after Greece, Romania and Slovenia. According to the same official version, if the increase were implemented, Albania would rise to first place with an average salary of 5,735 euros.
The political formula and the gap between the sides
Another formula is also on the political table. The draft proposed by the Socialists provides that the reference salary of magistrates should be 0.38 of the salary of the President of the Republic, up from the current 0.36.
According to the calculations presented, this solution would bring an increase of about 8,500 lek in the reference salary. That is far less than the request backed by the High Judicial Council and the High Prosecutorial Council, which comes out at nearly nine times higher.
This is precisely where the essence of the institutional debate lies: one side sees the increase as a necessary correction of the magistrate’s status, while the other sees it as a major financial leap requiring clear parliamentary decision-making and public justification.
The clash over magistrates’ salaries is not only a matter of coefficients and pay tables. It directly affects how public money is allocated, the boundaries between branches of power and the standard the state sets for itself in relation to citizens and other professions financed by the budget.
In this debate, the figures are clear. Less clear is whether the system is seeking a reasonable balance or a new privilege packaged as an institutional necessity.