Housing allowance for families with children [Bostadsbidrag till barnfamiljer]

Transcription

1 Housing allowance for families with children [Bostadsbidrag till barnfamiljer] Low-income families with children may be eligible for a housing allowance. The amount you receive depends on your income, your housing costs, the size of your home and how many children you have. You apply for the allowance based on the income you believe you will have during the year. If your income is higher than expected, you may have to pay back money. If your income is lower than expected, you can receive more allowance retrospectively. This fact sheet begins by describing the housing allowance rules. This is followed by tables to help you calculate whether you are entitled to housing allowance and, if so, how much. You can go directly to the tables for preliminary housing allowance to find out approximately how much allowance you can receive. However, you should bear in mind that the housing cost on which the allowance is based, the housing cost that you can take up when you apply for the allowance, is not always the same as your actual housing cost. Which families with children can obtain housing allowance? [Vilka barnfamiljer kan få bostadsbidrag?] You must live and be registered in the population register at the address for which you apply for housing allowance. However, in certain cases, an exception is made from the population register requirement. You can obtain housing allowance regardless of whether you own your home or rent it. You are considered to be a family with children if you have a child who lives with you or lives with you some of the time. Your child may be included in the household until he or she reaches the age of 18, or is over 18 and receives study assistance for upper secondary school students or extended child allowance. Children who study at upper secondary school level receive study assistance and children over the age of 16 who study at compulsory school level or at special school receive extended child allowance. The amount of allowance you can receive may depend on: the number of people who live in the household, the housing cost, the size of your home, income and assets whether the child lives with you most of the time, alternately with you and the other parent, or with the other parent most of the time where the child is registered in the population register who has custody of the child. 1 (15)

2 Some important limits [Några viktiga gränser] You cannot receive a housing allowance if you pay less than SEK 1,400 per month for your home. You cannot receive housing allowance if you or your husband, wife or partner, have an income exceeding SEK 408,000 per year. The allowance decreases if you live alone and have an annual income exceeding SEK 117,000. The limit for married persons and partners is SEK 58,500 each. You are not entitled to allowance if we calculate your housing allowance at less than SEK 100 per month. If your child only lives with you periodically, you can receive housing allowance only if you live in a house or apartment that is larger than 40 square metres and has at least two rooms and a kitchen. Preliminary and final allowance [Preliminärt och slutligt bidrag] The housing allowance you receive is a preliminary allowance. This means that we calculate it using the information you provide, although your final allowance is established retrospectively when the tax assessment has been made for the calendar year for which you received the allowance. If you then have a lower income than you expected, you can receive more allowance retrospectively in the form of a supplementary payment. If, on the contrary, you had a higher income than you expected, you may be liable to pay money back. The lowest amount that we pay retrospectively or that you must pay back is SEK 1,200. Example End of 2007: You have been granted housing allowance from January to December End of 2009: Försäkringskassan [the Swedish Social Insurance Agency] receives information from the Swedish Tax Agency [Skatteverket] on your income during January 2010: If you have to pay back money, you will receive an information letter from Försäkringskassan notifying you about the information provided by the Tax Agency and what the final allowance was calculated to be. February 2010: You will receive notification of the final housing allowance if you have received the correct preliminary housing allowance or are to receive a supplementary payment. March 2010: You will receive notification of the final housing allowance if you are to pay back allowance. If you have received more than SEK 2,500 too much in preliminary allowance during a calendar year, you must pay a fee. The size of the fee depends on how much you must pay back and current interest rates. Housing allowance is calculated per calendar year, not per month. This means that all income which you have during a calendar year affects the housing allowance, and that the income is considered to be equally apportioned to each month. This is the case regardless of whether you receive housing allowance every month or only a few months during the year. You can pay in advance to avoid a fee [Du kan betala i förskott för att slippa avgift] If you yourself discover or are informed by Försäkringskassan that you have received too much preliminary housing allowance, you can repay it before the final allowance is established. In this case, contact Försäkringskassan. You need not pay any fee if you 2 (15)

3 repay the excess amount paid no later than 30 September the year after you have received the allowance. Always report changes! [Anmäl alltid förändringar!] Since you may be obliged to pay back money if you have received too much housing allowance, it is important that you immediately report all changes that can lead to your receiving a lower housing allowance. This may be the case if your income or assets increase you sell a house, apartment or security and receive a capital gain a child s assets increase or the child receives a capital gain you move out a child leaves home a child over the age of 18 no longer receives study assistance for secondary school students or extended child allowance [barnbidrag] someone moves in with you someone else moves into your home you begin to work or receive a pension abroad How do I report changes? [Hur anmäler jag förändringar?] There is a special Swedish form to report changes called Bostadsbidrag ändrade uppgifter [ Housing allowance changed information ]. You can use this form if, for example, your rent increases or your income changes. Example You have been granted housing allowance for the period January to December. Your landlord notifies you that your rent will be increased by SEK 350 from 1 July. You submit notification of change to Försäkringskassan on 25 June with information about the rent increase from 1 July. Försäkringskassan changes your housing allowance for the period July December. You must then submit a new application form for housing allowance. Your preliminary allowance can decrease [Ditt preliminära bidrag kan minskas] If your income increases, you can notify Försäkringskassan of this by telephone. An income increase means that the allowance will be decreased for the remaining months of the calendar year. The increase in income may also lead to the allowance disappearing completely. Example You have received SEK 700 per month in housing allowance since January. You notify Försäkringskassan of a higher income at the beginning of August. The higher income means that you should only have received SEK 400 per month in allowance. However, you have received SEK 700 for seven months = SEK You allowance has been recalculated at SEK 400 x 12 months = SEK Since you have already received SEK 4 900, the allowance is reduced to SEK 0 for the months August December. 3 (15)

4 When can I obtain housing allowance? [När kan jag få bostadsbidrag?] Housing allowance can be granted at the earliest from and including the month that your application has been received by Försäkringskassan and is paid for at most twelve months at a time. After that a new application must be submitted. You can receive housing allowance 4 (15) from and including the month after the month when your entitlement to housing allowance begins up to and including the month when your entitlement ceases. This means that if your entitlement to allowance begins on the second or later in the month, you will receive housing allowance from the following month. If you are entitled to housing allowance on the first of a month, you will, however, receive housing allowance the same month. If your entitlement to housing allowance ceases on the first of a month, you will no longer receive housing allowance for this month. Example You have your first child on 16 July. You submit an application on housing allowance to Försäkringskassan the same month. You can then receive allowance from and including August. You then move home on 1 December. You will then not receive housing allowance in December. When is housing allowance paid out? [När betalas bostadsbidraget ut?] You receive housing allowance on the 27th of the month for the same month. If, for example, you receive allowance on 27 April, this is for the month of April. If the payment date is a Saturday, Sunday, a public holiday or Midsummer s Eve, the allowance will be paid out on the immediately preceding weekday. How do I apply for housing allowance? [Hur söker jag bostadsbidrag?] You apply for housing allowance on a form that you can download from our website You can also order forms by phone at There are four different forms. Which form to use depends on whether you are married or single and whether you rent your home or live in a tenant-owned apartment or house. Bear in mind that it can take longer to receive allowance if the form is not correctly completed. More information [Mer information] The fact sheet is not a legal text on this topic. Other fact sheets also deal with housing allowance: Housing Allowance for Young People Without Children [Bostadsbidrag till unga utan barn] Housing allowance information about housing cost and income All informational material can be found at Försäkringskassan and our website At you can use our self-service to take care of a number of matters quickly and easily.

5 Dial to order certificates, forms and brochures, or to submit certain notifications. Questions? [Frågor?] You can also phone our Customer Centre directly at or dial the National Relay Service for Text Telephony at Försäkringskassan checks [Försäkringskassan kontrollerar] Försäkringskassan checks the information you provide such as income, absence from work, civil status or where you live. We exchange information with other authorities and match data from, among others, the National Board of Student Aid [CSN], the unemployment benefit funds and the Tax Agency [Skatteverket]. It may be a criminal offence to deliberately provide incorrect information or fail to report changes which may affect your entitlement to compensation. Försäkringskassan reports all suspected cases of benefit fraud to the police. 5 (15)

6 Tables and examples [Tabeller och exempel] Accordingly, it is your income, your housing costs, the size of your home, how many children you have and where the children live that determine whether you are entitled to housing allowance and, if so, how much you receive. Maximum qualifying income [Högsta bidragsgrundande inkomst] These two tables show the maximum income that you or your husband, wife or partner may have to be entitled to housing allowance. The income that Försäkringskassan takes into consideration when we calculate the allowance is called the qualifying income. It is normally quite simply the amount that you earn before tax, although there are some special rules concerning, for example, the deductions you may make. Table 1 applies for single parents and married couples or partners who both have an income higher than SEK 58,500 per year. It includes your total income and other qualifying income. Table 1. If you have the highest qualifying income per year is one child SEK 306,000 two children SEK 351,500 three children SEK 408,000 Table 2 applies for married couples and partners where one or both of you have an income of at most SEK 58,500 per year. In this case, you should only count the income for the person with the highest income. Table 2. If you have the highest qualifying income is one child SEK 247,500 two children SEK 292,500 three children SEK 349,500 How the allowance is decreased when you earn more than the limit [Så minskas bidraget när du tjänar över gränsen] If you earn below the limits in Table 1 or 2, but more than SEK 117,000 per year (for couples SEK 58,500 each), the allowance will be reduced by 20 per cent of what you earn above SEK 117,000 and SEK 58,500 respectively. 6 (15) Example single person You earn SEK 135,000 per year = % x = Divide by 12 = 300 You will receive SEK 300 less per month in allowance.

7 Allowance qualifying housing cost [Bidragsgrundande bostadskostnad] The housing costs you are entitled to allowance for are called allowance qualifying housing costs. The maximum allowance qualifying housing cost depends on how many children you have. You cannot receive allowance for housing costs up to SEK 1,400. There is a ceiling for the amount of housing costs that can qualify for allowance. There is also a ceiling for the size of home that you can obtain allowance for. However, there is also a guarantee level that means that you always receive allowance for housing costs up to a certain amount. Housing cost [Bostadskostnad] Table 3. Highest allowance qualifying housing cost If you have the highest allowance qualifying housing cost per month is one child SEK 5,300 two children SEK 5,900 three children SEK 6,600 Housing area [Bostadsyta] Table 4. Largest housing area entitling to allowance If you have you can obtain allowance for a housing area of (no. of square metres) one child 80 two children 100 three children 120 four children 140 five or more children 160 Guarantee level [Garantinivå] The guarantee level means that you can always include costs up to a certain level when you apply for the allowance, even if the rule that limits your housing area gives you a lower calculated housing cost than this. However, you cannot, of course, include a higher housing cost than you actually have. Table 5. Guarantee level housing cost which you receive allowance for regardless of housing area If you have the guarantee level is one child SEK 3,000 7 (15)

8 If you have the guarantee level is two children SEK 3,300 three children SEK 3,600 four children SEK 3,900 five or more children SEK 4,200 Example of how you can calculate the allowance qualifying housing cost Karin and Lasse have two children. They rent a 140 square metre apartment. The monthly rent is SEK 4,000. Since they can only receive housing allowance for 100 square metres, their housing cost is calculated as follows: 100 x 4,000 = SEK 2, However, since the guarantee level for a family with two children is SEK 3,300, Karin and Lasse have an allowance qualifying housing cost of SEK 3,300 per month. Maximum allowance [Maximalt bidrag] The maximum amount you can receive in allowance depends on whether you have custody of the child, how many children you have and how much they live with you. Table 6. Maximum housing allowance when you have custody of the child, and the child lives most of the time with you and is registered in the population register at your address If you have you can receive at most one child SEK 3,200 two children SEK 4,000 three or more children SEK 4,900 Table 7. Maximum housing allowance when the child or children live with you some of the time or are not registered in the population register with you (periodic residence) If you have you can receive at most one child SEK 2,200 two children SEK 2,600 three or more children SEK 3,000 8 (15)

9 If you are a lodger [Om du är inneboende] Other rules apply if you live with someone else as a lodger. You must have custody of the child and you can at most receive: Table 8. Maximum housing allowance if you are a lodger If you are a lodger and have you can receive at most one child SEK 1,300 two children SEK 1,750 three or more children SEK 2,350 9 (15)

10 Tables for preliminary housing allowance [Tabeller för preliminärt bostadsbidrag] These tables show examples of the amount of preliminary housing allowance for various families. Tables 9A, B and C apply to single persons and spouses or partners who both have an income that exceeds SEK 58,500 per year. Take up your combined income when you use the table. Tables 10A, B and C apply for spouses or partners where one or both members of a family has a qualifying income which is at most SEK 58,500 per year. Take up only with the spouse s or partner s housing allowance qualifying income which is highest when you use the table. Single persons and spouses or partners which both have an income which exceeds SEK 58,500 per year [Ensamstående och makar eller sambor som båda har en inkomst som är högre än kronor per år] Families with one child [Familjer med ett barn] If the child only lives with you periodically, the specified housing allowance will be reduced by SEK 1,000. 9A. Housing allowance in SEK per month families with one child Housing allowance qualifying income, SEK/year Allowance qualifying housing cost, SEK per month 1,400 2,000 2,500 3,000 3,500 4,000 4,500 5,000 5, ,000 1,300 1,600 1,800 2,100 2,300 2,600 2,800 3,100 3, ,000 1,100 1,400 1,700 1,900 2,200 2,400 2,700 2,900 3, , ,000 1,300 1,500 1,800 2,000 2,300 2,500 2, , ,100 1,300 1,600 1,800 2,100 2, , ,200 1,400 1,700 1, , ,000 1,300 1, , , , , (15)

11 Families with two children [Familjer med två barn] If one of the children only lives with you periodically, the housing allowance is reduced by SEK 400. Due to the rounding-off rules, the reduction might be SEK 300 instead. If both children live with you periodically, the allowance is reduced by SEK 1,400. Due to the rounding-off rules, the reduction might be SEK 1,300 instead. 9B. Housing allowance in SEK per month families with two children Housing allowance qualifying income, SEK/year Allowance qualifying housing cost, SEK per month 1,400 2,000 2,500 3,000 3,500 4,000 4,500 5,000 5,500 5, ,000 1,700 2,000 2,300 2,500 2,800 3,000 3,300 3,500 3,800 4, ,000 1,600 1,900 2,100 2,400 2,600 2,900 3,100 3,400 3,600 3, ,000 1,200 1,500 1,700 2,000 2,200 2,500 2,700 3,000 3,200 3, , ,000 1,300 1,500 1,800 2,000 2,300 2,500 2,800 3, , ,100 1,400 1,600 1,900 2,100 2,400 2, , ,000 1,200 1,500 1,700 2,000 2, , ,000 1,300 1,500 1, , ,100 1, , , , (15)

12 Families with three or more children [Familjer med tre eller flera barn] If two of the children are living with you, the housing allowance is reduced by SEK 600. Due to the rounding-off rules, the reduction might be SEK 500 instead. If one of the children is living with you, the allowance is reduced by SEK 900. If all of the children live with you periodically, the allowance is reduced by SEK 1,900. 9C. Housing allowance in SEK per month families with three or more children Housing allowance qualifying income, SEK/year Allowance qualifying housing cost, SEK per month 1,400 2,000 2,500 3,000 3,500 4,000 4,500 5,000 5,500 6,000 6, ,000 2,300 2,600 2,900 3,100 3,400 3,600 3,900 4,100 4,400 4,600 4, ,000 2,200 2,500 2,700 3,000 3,200 3,500 3,700 4,000 4,200 4,500 4, ,000 1,800 2,100 2,300 2,600 2,800 3,100 3,300 3,600 3,800 4,100 4, ,000 1,300 1,600 1,900 2,100 2,400 2,600 2,900 3,100 3,400 3,600 3, , ,200 1,500 1,700 2,000 2,200 2,500 2,700 3,000 3,200 3, , ,100 1,300 1,600 1,800 2,100 2,300 2,600 2,800 3, , ,100 1,400 1,600 1,900 2,100 2,400 2, , ,000 1,200 1,500 1,700 2,000 2, , ,100 1,300 1,600 1, , ,100 1, , , , , (15)

13 Spouses or partners where one or both members of the family have a housing allowance qualifying income which is at most SEK 58,500 per year [Makar eller sambor där båda eller en i familjen har en bidragsgrundande inkomst som är högst kronor per år] Families with one child [Familjer med ett barn] If the child only periodically lives with you, the specified housing allowance will be reduced by SEK 1, A. Housing allowance in SEK per month families with one child Housing allowance qualifying income, SEK/year Allowance qualifying housing cost, SEK per month 1,,400 2,000 2,500 3,000 3,500 4,000 4,500 5,000 5, ,500 1,300 1,600 1,800 2,100 2,300 2,600 2,800 3,100 3,200 75,000 1,000 1,300 1,500 1,800 2,000 2,300 2,500 2,800 2, , ,100 1,400 1,600 1,900 2,100 2,400 2, , ,200 1,400 1,700 1,900 2, , ,000 1,300 1,500 1, , ,100 1, , , (15)

14 Families with two children [Familjer med två barn] If one of the children lives with you periodically, the housing allowance is reduced by SEK 400. Due to the rounding-off rules, the reduction might be SEK 300 instead. If both children live with you periodically, the allowance is reduced by SEK 1,400. Due to the rounding-off rules, the reduction might be SEK 1,300 instead. 10B. Housing allowance in SEK per month families with two children Housing allowance qualifying income, SEK/year Allowance qualifying housing cost, SEK per month 1,400 2,000 2,500 3,000 3,500 4,000 4,500 5,000 5,500 5, ,500 1,700 2,000 2,300 2,500 2,800 3,000 3,300 3,500 3,800 4,000 75,000 1,400 1,700 2,000 2,200 2,500 2,700 3,000 3,200 3,500 3, ,000 1,000 1,300 1,600 1,800 2,100 2,300 2,600 2,800 3,100 3, , ,100 1,400 1,600 1,900 2,100 2,400 2,600 2, , ,000 1,200 1,500 1,700 2,000 2,200 2, , ,100 1,300 1,600 1,800 2, , ,100 1,400 1, , ,000 1, , , (15)

15 Families with three or more children [Familjer med tre eller flera barn] If one of the children lives with you only periodically, the specified housing allowance will be reduced by SEK 600. The rounding-off rules may mean that the reduction will instead be SEK 500. If two of the children only live with you periodically, the allowance will be reduced by SEK 900. If all of the children only live with you periodically, the allowance will be reduced by SEK 1, C. Housing allowance in SEK per month families with three or more children Housing allowance qualifying income, SEK/year Allowance qualifying housing cost, SEK per month 1,400 2,000 2,500 3,000 3,500 4,000 4,500 5,000 5,500 6,000 6, ,500 2,300 2,600 2,900 3,100 3,400 3,600 3,900 4,100 4,400 4,600 4,900 75,000 2,000 2,300 2,600 2,800 3,100 3,300 3,600 3,800 4,100 4,300 4, ,000 1,600 1,900 2,200 2,400 2,700 2,900 3,200 3,400 3,700 3,900 4, ,000 1,200 1,500 1,700 2,000 2,200 2,500 2,700 3,000 3,200 3,500 3, , ,100 1,300 1,600 1,800 2,100 2,300 2,600 2,800 3,100 3, , ,200 1,400 1,700 1,900 2,200 2,400 2,700 3, , ,000 1,200 1,500 1,700 2,000 2,200 2, , ,000 1,300 1,600 1,800 2, , ,200 1,400 1, , ,000 1, , , (15)