Granting and disbursement of State family benefit

Families raising children are entitled to receive:

1. the State Family Benefit (hereinafter - benefit);
2. the supplement to the State Family Benefit for a child with a disability, regardless of the payment of the family benefit.

The benefit and supplement may be received by a person who:

• lives permanently in Latvia together with the child (Latvian citizens, non-citizens, foreigners, and stateless persons);
• has been assigned a personal identification number for themselves and the child;
• has an active status in the Population Register for themselves and the child.

The benefit may be granted to:

• one of the child’s parents;
• a guardian or adopter;
• the actual caregiver of the child (including a foster family), as determined by a decision of the Guardianship Authority;
• the child themselves after reaching the age of 18, if prior to that the child was in out-of-family care (guardianship or foster care).

The benefit may be granted to a spouse who is not the child’s parent if the child’s parent (the other spouse) provides written consent for the spouse to receive the benefit, under the conditions that:

• a marriage exists between the child’s parent and the benefit applicant;
• the child’s parent who consents to the spouse receiving the benefit has been granted the benefit for that child.

The benefit shall not be granted to a person who has received a temporary residence permit in Latvia.

The translation has been prepared using a machine translation tool.

The amount of the State family benefit depends on the number of children being raised for whom the person receives the State family benefit:

• for one child – 25 euro;
• for two children – 100 euro (50 euro per child);
• for three children – 225 euro (75 euro per child);
• for four or more children – 100 euro per child.

The total number of children shall also include children who are actually being raised by the family on the basis of a decision of the court of guardianship, as well as adopted children and children under guardianship.

The amount of the supplement to the State family benefit for a child with a disability is:

• 160 euro per month for each child with a disability.

The translation has been prepared using a machine translation tool.

Family state benefit

• The benefit shall be granted for each child being raised in the family from the day the child reaches the age of one year until the age of 16 years (until the day the child turns 16).
• For a child aged from 16 to 20 years (until the day the child turns 20), the benefit shall be paid if the child is enrolled in a general education institution, a vocational education institution, or is studying full-time in a higher education institution (applicable as of 1 January 2026) and has not entered into marriage.
• If a child with a disability is being raised, the State family benefit for that child shall continue to be paid after the child reaches the age of 16, regardless of whether the child is studying or not. The benefit shall be paid no longer than until the day the child with a disability reaches the age of 20 (until the day the child turns 20) or enters into marriage.

The main conditions for the payment of the benefit after the child reaches the age of 16

• For children who have reached the age of 16 and are enrolled in general or vocational education institutions, the State Social Insurance Agency (SSIA) shall pay the benefit until 30 September (inclusive). The payment of the benefit shall not be suspended during the summer months.
• If the child continues their studies in the new academic year, the benefit payment shall resume from 1 October. These payment conditions apply to children studying up to the 11th grade (inclusive).
• If the child is studying in the 12th grade, which is the graduation year, or in a graduation course of a vocational education institution, the benefit payment shall be terminated as of 1 July.
• If, after completing a general or vocational education institution, the child commences full-time studies at a higher education institution in September (applicable as of 1 January 2026), SSIA shall continue the payment of the benefit. This means that the benefit shall also be paid for the summer months.
• If, after completing a general or vocational education institution, the child does not commence higher education studies immediately in September of that year, the benefit shall be paid from the day the studies commence. No benefit shall be paid for periods during which the child is not studying, including the summer months.
• If the child ceases to study or discontinue their education (for example, due to voluntary withdrawal or removal from the student register), the payment of the benefit shall be terminated as of the first day of the month following the month in which the child ceased studies.

Obtaining information about a child’s education and studies

If the child studies in Latvia, the State Social Insurance Agency (SSIA) shall obtain information from the Ministry of Education and Science. The beneficiary is not required to submit a certificate confirming that the child is studying.

If the child is enrolled in a general education or vocational education institution, the Ministry of Education and Science shall provide SSIA with information regarding the academic year. For children studying in higher education institutions (including colleges), information shall be provided regarding the study semesters.

If the child studies abroad, the applicant for the benefit must submit a certificate issued by the foreign educational institution to SSIA. The certificate issued by the foreign educational institution must contain information sufficient to unequivocally confirm that the person indicated in the document is studying full-time in a general education, vocational education, or higher education institution during the period specified in the document.

Foreign-issued documents must be processed in accordance with document legalization requirements. If the document is issued in a foreign language, a translation of the document may also be required.

Payment of the benefit to one of the parents or a spouse

Parents shall mutually agree which of them will receive the benefit for the child. However, the amount of the benefit will be higher if one parent applies for the benefit for all children.

If parents who jointly raise two children receive the benefit separately, the father shall receive the benefit for one child (EUR 25 per month) and the mother for the other child (EUR 25 per month).

If one parent wishes to receive the benefit for both children, the benefit amount shall be calculated taking into account the total number of children for which that parent receives the benefit. For two children, the benefit shall be EUR 100 per month.

In such cases, the following applications must be submitted to SSIA:

• • One parent must submit an application to voluntarily renounce the benefit for future payments;
  • The other parent must submit an application to receive the benefit for the child for whom the benefit was previously received by the first parent, who has now renounced it.

In families where each spouse has children from previous relationships and each currently receives the benefit for their own children, it is possible for one spouse to receive the benefit for all children being raised together, including the children of the other spouse. In such a case, the family benefit amount will be higher.

If the spouses make this choice, the following applications must be submitted to SSIA:

• • The spouse who currently receives the family benefit for their own child must submit an application to voluntarily renounce their right to receive the benefit in the future, agreeing to transfer this right to the other spouse;
  • The spouse who is not the parent of the child must submit an application for the benefit to be granted.

The payment of the benefit shall be suspended as of the first day of the month following the month in which the renunciation is submitted. Accordingly, the benefit can only be granted to the other parent or spouse after the payment to the first parent or spouse has been suspended.

Supplement to the state family benefit for child with disability

The supplement to the State family benefit for a child with a disability shall be granted if the State Medical and Disability Expertise Commission (hereinafter – the Medical Commission) has determined the child’s disability.

The supplement shall be granted from the date the child is recognized as a child with a disability until the day the child reaches 18 years of age, regardless of the payment of the State family benefit.

If the Medical Commission has established medical indications for special care or for reimbursement of transport expenses, the child or their guardian shall also be entitled to receive:

• • Childcare benefit for a child with a disability;
  • Allowance for reimbursement of transport expenses.

Suspension of the benefit and supplement payments

• For the period while the child, for whom the benefit is granted, is placed in a long-term social care and social rehabilitation institution or a foster family, is in a penal institution or a social correction educational institution, or a guardian is appointed for the child. Except when guardianship is established for a minor parent, or the Guardianship Authority, in a specific decision, determines the suspension of the benefit for a person who does not actually care for and raise the child.
• For the period while the beneficiary is in a penal institution or placed in a long-term social care and social rehabilitation institution.
• If the beneficiary or the child, for whom the benefit is granted, leaves the Republic of Latvia for permanent residence abroad.

For a spouse who is not the child’s parent, the payment of the benefit and supplement is also suspended if:

• SSIA receives an application from the child’s parent (the other spouse) for the granting of the benefit;

For example, if the parent wishes to receive the benefit for their own child or for another reason.

• the marriage is dissolved;
• the spouse who is the child’s parent dies;
• the child’s parental rights of the spouse who is the child’s parent are terminated or revoked, for the child for whom the benefit was granted to that spouse.

Benefit and the supplement may be received

• The benefit and any supplement shall be transferred to the account of the beneficiary in a credit institution in the Republic of Latvia or via the postal payment system.
• If the benefit is granted pursuant to an international social security agreement concluded by Latvia or under the provisions of a Regulation, and the beneficiary’s residence is in an EU/EEA Member State or a contracting state, the benefit may be transferred to a bank account in the respective foreign country.

The benefit and any supplement shall be paid monthly for the current month (for example: in May for May).

The translation has been prepared using a machine translation tool.

Example.

Granting of an benefit to a spouse who is not the child's parent

Anna and John got married. They are raising 3 children together. Anna has 2 children born in a previous marriage. John has one child from a previous relationship.

Before 31.12.2021.

Anna receives a state family benefit and a supplement for two children who are brought up and receives an benefit of 44.14 euros per month.

John – 11.38 euros per month.

Total for family: 55.52 euros

From 01.12.2022

By submitting the application to the SSIA, John refuses to receive the further benefit and agrees that Anna will receive it in the future. Anna, on the other hand, requests the benefit. The amount of the new benefit for 3 children is 225 euros per month, 75 euros for each child.

If such a choice is not made and they continue to receive benefits separately, then Anna will receive 100 euros, but John 25 euros. The total for the family will be 125 euros.

Question

Can an application for state family benefit be submitted only after the child has reached the age of 1?

The answer

Irrespective of the fact that the state family benefit is granted from the age of one, one of the child's parents can claim this benefit immediately after the birth of the child, so that later, in the care of the child, he or she does not forget to do so.

For example: an application for state family benefit may be submitted together with an application for childcare benefit or childbirth benefit.

The benefit will be granted and paid by the SSIA from the date from which you are entitled to receive it.

Examples of how state family benefit is paid for children who continue to study after the age of 16

Example 1: Dace finished the 9th grade this year and will continue studies in high school. The SSIA will pay the benefit until September 30 and this autumn, at the beginning of the new school year, after receiving information from the Ministry of Education and Science (MES) that Dace will continue to study in the 10th grade of high school – will continue to pay the state family benefit. The benefit will also be paid if Dace continues her education at a vocational school.

Example 2: Edgars is 19 years old. He finished 12th grade this year. In the next school year, he will learn the profession of carpenter in a vocational education institution. The SSIA paid the state family benefit for Edgars until June 30. At the beginning of the new school year, receiving information from the MES that Edgars is studying at a vocational school, the SSIA will grant the benefit for July and August and will continue to pay it for the new school year while Edgars is studying, but not beyond the age of 20.

Example 3: John studies at a vocational education institution, acquiring a 4-year education. This year he completed the 1st year. The SSIA will pay the state family benefit for John until September 30. At the beginning of the new school year, receiving information from the MES that John continues to study in the 2nd year of this educational institution, the SSIA will continue to pay the state family benefit.

Question

Is the benefit paid if the child is studying at a higher educational institution?

The answer
No, the state family benefit is not paid if the child is studying at a higher educational institution.

Question

If the child for whom the state family benefit is received has his or her 20th birthday on October 15, for what period will the benefit be paid?

The answer
The benefit in October will be paid for the period from 1 October to 14 October (inclusive), i.e. for the October days before the 20th birthday. The benefit is calculated in proportion to the number of days. For example, if the amount of the benefit is 25 euros per month, for days before 14 October it will be paid (25:31) x 14 = 11.20 euros.