The Belgian eurocrat is entitled to the money as a transitional allowance over the next three years after finishing his term as European Council president.
In a sign that the juggernaut of EU excess shows no signs of slowing, Mr Van Rompuy will be paid £133,723 a year - 55 per cent of his basic salary - until December 2017, on top of his annual Brussels pension of £52,000.
He will also receive a £21,000 one-off payment, taking his earnings to £578,000 over the next three years.
The extraordinary golden goodbye, which is to ease him back into life outside the world of Brussels officialdom, immediately triggered an angry backlash.
Ukip leader Nigel Farage, who once described Mr Van Rompuy as a "damp rag", blasted the payments.
"Van Rompuy's term in office has seen millions driven into poverty and unemployment by the eurozone crisis but he himself has hit the jackpot," he said. Express.
