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How to apply for care allowance for pensioners

Apply for care allowance for pensioners for yourself 

Apply for care allowance for pensioners on behalf of another person

How to apply for care allowance for pensioners for yourself 

Apply for disability allowance online

Apply for benefit
  1. Apply for care allowance for pensioners online.
    • Applications for the continued payment of the allowance and for an increased allowance can be made on the same form. Applications for continued payment of the disability allowance should be filed within six months of the end of the previous payment period.
  2. Scan or take a photo of the attachments and send them online. Enclose with your application:
    • Up-to-date medical statement C (no older than six months) or medical statement B, if it includes the details needed when processing the application.

  3. You can complete the application with someone who knows your situation well. You can also enclose a statement, written for example by someone who is helping you, which describes how well you are coping in your daily life.

  4. Visit the OmaKela-service to see if your application has been decided and the amount of the benefit. You can also see any possible reminders concerning, for instance, documents missing from your application. A written decision on your claim will be sent to you by post. If you have expenses which are caused by an illness and which you declared in the application, we may ask you further information if the expenses could be relevant to the amount of your allowance.

Alternatively you can complete and print out the form Care allowance for pensioners / Disability allowance for persons aged 16 years or over (EV 256e, PDF). Send your application by post along with the supporting documents to Kela, PL 10, 00056 KELA.

How to apply for care allowance for pensioners on behalf of another person

  1. Complete the form Care allowance for pensioners / Disability allowance for persons aged 16 years or over (EV 256e, PDF).
    • Applications for the continued payment of the allowance and for an increased allowance can be made on the same form. Applications for continued payment of the disability allowance should be filed within six months of the end of the previous payment period.
  2. Send the application using the OmaKela e-service:
    • Save the blank form to your device. Do not fill in the application directly in the browser, otherwise some of the information may not be saved.
    • Open the form with Adobe Reader and fill it in.
    • Save the completed form to your device. Note that the form must be in PDF format.
    • Log in to OmaKela (available in Finnish and Swedish). Go to Asioi toisen henkilön puolesta (Act on behalf of another person).
    • Select Tee hakemus (File an application).
    • Select the claim on your device and press Lähetä (Send).
    • When you send your application online you do not need to sign it.
    • Enclose with your application up-to-date medical statement C (no older than six months) or medical statement B, if it includes the details needed when processing the application. Send them via OmaKela after you have submitted your claim. If they are paper documents, you can photograph or scan them.

  3. Visit the OmaKela-service to see if your application has been decided and the amount of the benefit. You can also see any possible reminders concerning, for instance, documents missing from your application. A written decision on your claim will be sent to you by post. If you have expenses which are caused by an illness and which you declared in the application, we may ask you further information if the expenses could be relevant to the amount of your allowance.

It is possible to manage another person’s affairs by phone, by mail or by visiting a customer service point with a power of attorney.

When to apply

Kela grants the benefit for a maximum of six months retrospectively. Retroactive payment is always considered from case to case.

An estate can not apply for the benefit.

Information for applying

You do not need to declare exact costs in the application, and there is no requirement to submit any supporting documents concerning the costs either. It is sufficient for the customer to describe what types of costs they have in the application. Kela will ask for further details if it appears possible that the costs could be relevant to the amount of the allowance.

If interacting with Kela is challenging for you personally, you can authorise another person to do so on your behalf. For this purpose you must submit a power of attorney to Kela, indicating who can act on your behalf. It is not possible to act on another person's behalf in the e-service. The person whom you have authorised to act on your behalf can act on your behalf by phone, by post or at Kela’s customer service point.

The same form can be used to apply for disability allowance for persons aged 16 years and for care allowance for pensioners. Kela determines which allowance the applicant is entitled to when reviewing the application.

It is worthwhile to file an application for continued payment and related supporting documents with Kela well in advance of the end of the payment period so that payment of the benefit is not interrupted. Applications for continued payment of the disability allowance should be filed within six months of the end of the previous payment period, however.

A new medical statement is usually needed for an application for increased benefit. However, a new statement is not needed if increased benefit is applied for on account of special expenses. In the Additional information section of the application, indicate that you are applying for an increased allowance because of the expenses.

Last modified 17/4/2024
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