Care allowance for pensioners

The care allowance for pensioners is intended to provide support for pensioners with a disability or chronic illness as regards their daily life, functional ability, rehabilitation and care.

The allowance can be granted to persons with a disability or chronic illness who are retired full-time.

Retired full-time

Care allowance for pensioners can be awarded to persons aged 16 years or over who live in Finland and who receive for instance old-age pension, disability pension, rehabilitation allowance or surviving spouse’s pension from Finland or from abroad.

If you receive only partial disability pension, part-time pension or unemployment pension, you are not entitled to care allowance. However, you may be entitled to disability allowance for persons aged 16 years or over.

Disability or chronic illness

You may be entitled to care allowance for pensioners if your functional ability is impaired continuously for at least a year due to disability or illness.

Impaired functional ability means that you have difficulties in taking care of yourself and coping with activities of daily living, such as personal hygiene, getting dressed, necessary household chores or daily errands outside the home.

Need of assistance decisive

The entitlement to the allowance is determined on the basis of your need of assistance, guidance and supervision due to disability or illness. If you need assistance only for household chores or daily errands, this does not entitle to care allowance.

Granting of the care allowance presupposes that you need

  • assistance with personal activities of daily living, such as personal hygiene, getting dressed or communicating or
  • guidance and supervision, such as reminders and encouragement in activities of daily living

Allowance payable at three different rates

The care allowance for pensioners is payable at three different rates: care allowance at the basic rate, care allowance at the middle rate and care allowance at the highest rate. The rate of allowance that you will be granted is affected by the need of assistance, guidance and supervision.

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