About to apply for social assistance? Keep these tips in mind when sending bills to Kela

You can get social assistance if your income, assets and other benefits are not enough to cover your essential everyday expenses, such as rent, food and prescription medicines. When you apply for social assistance, you must send Kela bills or receipts for certain expenses before we can grant you social assistance for them.

1. Keep in mind that you do not have to send any bills or receipts for expenses included in the basic amount of your social assistance to Kela. The basic amount is a fixed amount set by Kela that covers expenses such as food, clothes, cleaning products and phone bills. For example, the basic amount is set at EUR 578.43 per month for a person who lives alone. Read more about the basic amount.
2. You must submit bills or receipts for other expenses. The category of other expenses is limited to certain expenses such as your electricity bill, home insurance and customer fees charged by public healthcare providers. Kela cannot pay you social assistance for example for vet bills or a new washing machine. Check which expenses Kela can cover.
3. Kela cannot process bills or receipts without an application! We recommend that you submit your bills and receipts when you apply for social assistance. However, if you get a bill after Kela has issued you a decision on your social assistance, you can submit the bill to Kela if its due date is within the period that the decision applies to. You cannot get social assistance for late fees, interest expenses or recovery costs. We do not recommend submitting bills that are dated in the future before you apply for social assistance.
4. You can submit your bills and receipts in the OmaKela e-service or send them by post to Kela. You can also choose whether Kela pays the amount of social assistance you get for the bill to you or directly to the issuer of the bill (biller). Kela will pay the bill directly to the biller only if the social assistance you get covers the entire bill. Always check the decision you get from Kela to see if Kela has paid the bills you have submitted in the way you want.

Read more: Bills and receipts in social assistance