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Amount and payment of child maintenance allowance

The amount of the child maintenance allowance depends on the maintenance agreement or the court order and also on the grounds on which you are applying for the allowance. Child maintenance allowance is paid either in full or at a reduced rate.

The full amount of the child maintenance allowance is EUR 196.02 per month.

The full amount of the child maintenance allowance

If the person liable for maintenance fails to pay child support, Kela will pay the full child maintenance allowance, if the confirmed amount of child support is at least equal to the full child maintenance allowance. Kela pays the full child maintenance allowance and collects the unpaid child support from the liable parent. If Kela succeeds in collecting the outstanding child support, Kela will pay any difference between the child support and the child maintenance allowance to the recipient of the child support. See an example of the amount and payment of child maintenance allowance at the end of the page.

Child maintenance allowance is also paid at the full rate for example in the following situations:

  • The person liable for maintenance fails to pay child support that, due to the person’s limited ability to pay, has been confirmed at a lower amount than the full child maintenance allowance.
  • No child support has been confirmed to be paid due to the financial situation of the parent liable for maintenance.

In such a case, the maintenance agreement or court order must include a statement indicating that the person liable for maintenance is not able to pay child support due to his/her financial situation. See an example at the end of the page.

Child maintenance allowance is also paid at the full rate for example in the following situations:

  • The child was born out of wedlock, and another parent liable for maintenance has not been legally established for the child.
  • The child is born in the marriage between its mother and her female partner, but the child has no legally established other parent and the mother's female partner has not adopted the child.
  • The child has been adopted, and the child has only one parent.
  • The amount of child support could not be determined at the same time as the parenthood was established. This happens for instance when the child’s mother has tried through the court to get more than one person legally established as parent. In such a case, child support cannot be confirmed until the parenthood has been legally established.

Reduced child maintenance allowance

Kela will pay the child maintenance allowance at a reduced rate if the amount of child support has been confirmed to be lower than the full amount of child maintenance allowance due to the financial situation of the parent liable for maintenance. In such a case, an explicit mention of the inability to contribute to the child’s maintenance must be included in the maintenance agreement or the court order. Kela will pay you the difference between the child maintenance allowance and the child support, and you will also get child support from the parent liable for maintenance. The total amount that you get will thus equal the full amount of child maintenance allowance. See an example at the end of the page.

If the confirmed child support is lower than the full child maintenance allowance and this is due to some other reason than the liable person’s limited ability to pay, Kela will not pay the difference between the two amounts. If the parent liable for maintenance fails to pay the child support, Kela will, however, pay child maintenance allowance at a rate equalling the confirmed child support. The minimum amount payable is EUR 5.

Child maintenance allowance is tax-free income. The amount of the child maintenance allowance and the child support varies from year to year. It is adjusted in line with the cost-of-living index.

How other benefits affect child maintenance allowance

The child maintenance allowance is not affected by other Kela benefits with the exception of conscript’s allowance granted to a child, which is deducted from the amount of the child maintenance allowance.

Payment

Kela pays the child maintenance allowance to the recipient monthly on the 10th of the month. Child support payments recovered from the parent liable for maintenance are paid on the 25th. If the scheduled payment date would fall on a holiday or a Saturday, the child maintenance allowance and child support will be paid on the nearest preceding banking day. Kela sends the data on child maintenance allowances paid out to the National Incomes Register within five days of the date of payment.

Child maintenance allowance is paid to the legal guardian or to another person in whose care the child is. If the child has reached the age of 15 and lives independently, the allowance can also be granted and paid to the child him/herself.

It is payable until the child turns 18, but payment may end earlier if maintenance liability ends or if other liability criteria are no longer met.

Kela may review the allowance if the family's situation changes in a way that affects the allowance.

Example of amount and payment of child maintenance allowance

One of the parents has been ordered to make child support payments of EUR 50 per month for his/her child. Because the parent liable for maintenance has financial difficulties, child support is set at an amount lower than the child maintenance allowance, which means that Kela will pay the difference between the two (EUR 146.02 per month). If the liable parent fails to pay child support, Kela will pay the full child maintenance allowance of EUR 196.02 per month and will collect EUR 50 per month from the liable parent.

Amount and payment of child maintenance allowance 2011–2023

YearAmount
2023186.97 € per month
2022172.59 € per month
2021167.35 € per month
2020167.01 € per month
2019158.74 € per month
2018156.39 € per month
2017155.50 € per month
2016154.77 € per month
2015155.17 € per month
2014153.63 € per month
2013151.85 € per month
2012147.96 € per month

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Last modified 13/3/2024