Kela to double child benefits for December

The national social insurance institution- Kela will pay double the normal child benefit in December, said an official press release on Thursday.

The Kela will make the increase under the government proposal for temporary amendment of the Child Benefit Act and the Act on Social Assistance submitted on Thursday.

The government made the proposal with the goal of boosting the purchasing power of families with children at a time of increasing prices.

For families who also receive social assistance, the extra child benefit would not count against their social assistance.

Also the single-parent supplement to child benefits would be doubled. Kela pays child benefits for all children under 17 years who live permanently in Finland.

The amount of the child benefit increases with the number of children.

Kela pays 94.88 euros for one child, 104.84 euros for second child, 133.79 euros for third child, 163.24 euros for fourth child and 182.69 euros for the fifth and each additional child every month.

The single-parent supplement is €63.30 per month for each child.

The child benefit is tax-free income. The amount of child benefit is not affected by the recipient’s income or assets. Child benefits are not tied to the national pensions index.

The child benefit normally counts as income for purposes of social assistance. In November 2021, for example, about 15% of social assistance recipients were also paid child benefit. Under the Government’s proposal, the extra child benefit paid in December would not count against the social assistance.

September 2022, Kela paid child benefits to 533,322 recipients, representing payments for a total of 959,481 children.

Doubling the child benefit for December would increase child benefit expenditures by about 112 million euros.

The double child benefit would be paid out on the usual monthly payment date, which this year falls on Friday, 23 December.