The Flemish government has only paid an extra Covid-19 allowance for 6,500 children on top of the family benefit, the former child benefit. However, the government calculated that 126,000 children would be eligible. Minister of Welfare Wouter Beke (CD&V) calls on families to still apply for the allowance. According to opposition party sp.a, Beke deliberately keeps the target group small.
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It concerns a specific allowance for families with children who are entitled to Flemish family benefits. The extra is for families who can demonstrate that their income has decreased by at least 10 percent in March, April, May or June compared to January or February and is below the income limit of 2,213 euros (gross taxable income). They must be able to demonstrate a 1 month drop in income. They receive a one-off payment of EUR 120 per child, in three monthly installments.
The government cannot automatically pay the extra child allowance because it has no insight into the loss of income. Anyone who thinks they are entitled to it can apply for the supplement from the Groeipakket payer. There is still time for that until October 31st. With the application, they must send supporting documents proving the loss of income. This could be, for example, pay slips, certificates of benefits, or a statement from the accountant.
15 million euros
The government allocated 15 million euros for the measure. In just two months’ time, only about 800,000 euros has been distributed. Beke makes a double appeal: “To vulnerable families: apply for the allowance. To everyone: spread this message ”.
According to opposition party sp.a, it is no surprise that the number of applications is low. “This small target group is a conscious choice of the minister,” says Flemish MP Hannes Anaf. According to him, there was a possibility of automatically giving more money to vulnerable families, in particular by temporarily increasing the existing social benefits and speeding up the procedure for obtaining such a benefit in the event of loss of income.
“He also serves up a lot of paperwork for the greatly reduced target group,” says Anaf. “We all know that this is not easy for people in poverty. It is therefore not surprising that the number of applications is low, the minister should have known this too. ”
Family attachments
It concerns a specific allowance for families with children who are entitled to Flemish family benefits. The extra is for families who can demonstrate that their income has decreased by at least 10 percent in March, April, May or June compared to January or February and is below the income limit of 2,213 euros (gross taxable income). They must be able to demonstrate a 1 month drop in income. They receive a one-off payment of EUR 120 per child, in three monthly installments.
The government cannot automatically pay the extra child allowance because it has no insight into the loss of income. Anyone who thinks they are entitled to it can apply for the supplement from the Groeipakket payer. There is still time for that until October 31st. With the application, they must send supporting documents proving the loss of income. This could be, for example, pay slips, certificates of benefits, or a statement from the accountant.
The government allocated 15 million euros for the measure. In just two months’ time, only about 800,000 euros has been distributed. Beke makes a double appeal: “To vulnerable families: apply for the allowance. To everyone: spread this message ”.
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