The Grandchild Care Allowance supports grandparents as they assume responsibility for caring for their grandchildren. Find out if you can benefit.
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O grandchild care subsidy it is a support given to grandparents who have to miss work when a grandchild is born or provide assistance in case of illness. This benefit, awarded by Social Security, aims to compensate for work income lost during these absences.
Subsidy for grandchild care: modalities and rules
There are two types of subsidy for assisting a grandchild: the subsidy for assisting the birth of a grandchild and the subsidy for assisting a minor grandchild.
1
Subsidy for assistance for the birth of a grandchild
In this case, the subsidy is granted for a period of up to 30 consecutive days after the birth of the baby and, for the grandparents to benefit from this support, they must live with their grandchildren and the child must be the daughter of a minor under 16 years of age. That is, it is only possible to receive this support when you are replacing your parents.
two
Subsidy for assisting a minor grandchild – with a disability or chronic illness
already the child care subsidy intended for grandparents who miss work to provide urgent and necessary assistance to their grandchildren in case of illness or accident. It is awarded if or grandchildren are minors or, regardless of age, if they have a disability or chronic illness.
These days of absence for grandparents are deducted from the days that parents are entitled to be absent, in each calendar year, to care for their children.
Only one person can apply for this support. That is, if one of the grandparents is absent to assist the grandchild, neither the other grandparent nor the minor’s parents can be absent for the same reason.
Remember that each parent can take up to 30 days off per calendar year to care for a child under 12 years of age. If you are over 12 years old, this period becomes 15 days a year.
Subsidy for grandchild care: who is entitled?
The grandchild care subsidy is intended for grandparents who are employees, including domestic and home service.
Support can also be requested by self-employed workers and beneficiaries of the Voluntary Social Security who are scholarship holders or work on ships belonging to foreign companies.
If the grandparents are in pre-retirement or receiving a pension, they may also be entitled to the subsidy, as long as they work and pay for Social Security.
access conditions
To be eligible, the applicant must apply within six months from the day you stopped working. You must also have completed the guarantee period, that is, you must have paid Social Security in the previous six months.
How much is the grandchild care subsidy?
In the form of assistance for the birth of a grandchild, the amount is equal to 100% of the reference remuneration.
In the modality of assistance to a minor grandchild, the value corresponds to 65% of the Reference Remuneration (RR).
It is important, however, to point out that Social Security establishes a minimum limit of €12.81 per day for the subsidy to care for a grandchild (80% of 1/30 of the Social Support Index, which, in 2023, is €480.43).
The subsidy is paid monthly or in one lump sum, depending on the concession period. In any of the modalities, the beneficiary receives the support by check or bank transfer.
compensatory benefits
Compensatory benefits compensate for holiday and Christmas allowances (or others of a similar nature) that you have stopped receiving because you are looking after your grandchild.
They are added to the subsidy for grandchild care and correspond to 80% of the amount that the beneficiary no longer receives from the employer.
To receive this extra support, you must apply through Direct Social Security. You must access the job menu and then select the option Compensatory benefits for holiday and Christmas allowances.
If you prefer, you can apply in person at the Social Security services, delivering the form Model RP 5003-DGSS.
How to apply? What are the deadlines?
The application can be made via Direct Social Security, filling out the form and sending the scanned documentation.
You can also mail or deliver all documentation to the Social Security Services.
What documents are needed?
You must deliver the Model RP5054–DGSS. To receive more quickly, you must send a document proving your bank’s IBAN.
In the case of the birth subsidy, a doctor’s statement proving the birth of the grandchild or the baby’s civil identification document must be attached.
If the request is related to assistance in case of illness or accident, a medical statement is required indicating how long you will have to stop working to care for your grandchild.
Article originally published in July 2019. Last updated in March 2023.
