Government proposes an increase to the maternity grant – to be valued at EUR 210 as of 1 April 2026

You can get the maternity grant either as a maternity package or a one-off payment. Kela grants the maternity grant based on the due date of the baby. If you are adopting instead, Kela grants the maternity grant based on the date on which the child was placed in your care. At present, Kela grants the maternity grant either as a one-off payment of EUR 170 or as a maternity package whose purchase value is EUR 170.

Increase expected to apply as of April

The Government has allocated funds for an increase in the maternity grant in its budget proposal for 2026. If Parliament approves the proposal, the maternity grant will increase by EUR 40. If your due date is on 1 April 2026 or later or if your adopted child is placed in your care on 1 April 2026 or later, you will get either a one-off payment of EUR 210 or a maternity package and a one-off payment of EUR 40 as your maternity grant. This means that if you decide to choose the maternity package, you will also get EUR 40 in cash to make up the difference because the maternity package in circulation at that time will be the edition whose purchase value is EUR 170.

When the next edition of the maternity package is put in circulation, you will get either a one-off payment of EUR 210 or a maternity package as your maternity grant. This means that if you decide to choose the maternity package at that time, you will no longer get the one-off payment of EUR 40 with your maternity package because the purchase value of the new maternity package will be EUR 210.

Who can apply for the maternity grant?

You can apply for the maternity grant if you have undergone a health check by a doctor or at a maternity and child health clinic before the end of the fourth month of pregnancy and the doctor or clinic has issued you a certificate stating that your pregnancy has lasted for at least 154 days. You have to apply for the maternity grant no later than two months before the expected due date.

If you are about to adopt a child, you can apply for the maternity grant as from the date on which the adoption service has placed the child in your care. You must apply for the maternity grant within two months of this date.

How to apply and when you will get a decision

You can apply for the maternity grant in the OmaKela e-service (available in Finnish and Swedish only). Kela will pay the maternity grant into the bank account you have stated in your application. We recommend that you check that your bank account number is saved in OmaKela when you apply for the maternity grant.

Parliament will decide on the allocation made for the increase in the maternity grant in December. This means that Kela can start processing maternity grant applications submitted by customers who have the right to the increased maternity grant in January 2026 at the earliest. For example, if you submit an application for the maternity grant in November 2025, Kela can issue a decision on your application in January 2026 at the earliest.

Learn more

Maternity grant (kela.fi)
Press release about the Government budget proposal for 2026 (valtioneuvosto.fi)