Development allowance and activity grant [Aktivitetsstöd och utvecklingsersättning] If you are participating in a labour market programme, you are eligible for development allowance or an activity grant. If you are 25 or older and qualify for unemployment insurance, you will receive an activity grant otherwise you will receive development allowance. This page explains how each of the two benefits works. What is development allowance and an activity grant? [Vad är aktivitetsstöd och utvecklingsersättning?] What is development allowance? [Vad är utvecklingsersättning?] If you are 18-24 years old, do not qualify for unemployment insurance and are participating in a labour market programme, you are eligible for development allowance. If you qualify for unemployment insurance, you are eligible for an activity grant. You can receive development allowance up to five days a week. Development allowance is tax-exempt and does not qualify you for pension, holiday or sickness benefit. What is an activity grant? [Vad är aktivitetsstöd?] If you are 25 or older, qualify for unemployment insurance and are participating in a labour market programme, you are eligible for an activity grant. You can receive an activity grant for up to five days a week. An activity grant is taxable and qualifies you for pension but not holiday or sickness benefit. 1 (11)
What do I do to receive development allowance or an activity grant?[hur gör jag för att få aktivitetsstöd eller utvecklingsersättning?] You receive development allowance or an activity grant for the days that you participate in the programme or are absent for an approved reason. Send the form entitled Försäkran aktivitetsstöd eller utvecklingsersättning (FK5057) (Assurance Activity Grant or Development Allowance) to Försäkringskassan once a month. Fill out the form at www.forsakringskassan.se or order it by phoning Försäkringskassan s self-service line at 020-524 524. When you fill out the form, indicate the days that you participated in the programme and the days that you were absent. How much development allowance will I receive? [Hur mycket får jag i utvecklingsersättning?] If you have an upper secondary school degree and participate in a programme full-time, you will receive SEK 141 per day. If you do not have an upper secondary school degree and participate in a programme fulltime, you will receive SEK 48 per day. Your allowance will be raised to SEK 141 per day on July 1 of the year that you turn 20. Development allowance is tax-exempt. You will receive less development allowance if your programme is part-time. How much will my activity grant be? [Hur mycket får jag i aktivitetsstöd?] The size of your activity grant will depend on whether you qualify for unemployment insurance, as well as the number of days of unemployment insurance and activity grant that you have used. Generally speaking, the size of your activity grant will be reduced if your programme is not full-time or if you are receiving other compensation or income. A letter will be sent to your home address notifying you of the size of your activity grant. Check out the information below if you want to find out more about how we calculate the size of your activity grant. If you qualify for unemployment insurance [Om du uppfyller villkoren för a-kassa] If you qualify for unemployment insurance, the size of your activity grant will be based on the unemployment compensation that you would have received. If you participate in a programme full-time, your activity grant will be SEK 365-760 per day. The days that you receive an activity grant are deducted from the number of days for which you would have received unemployment compensation. 2 (11)
Your activity grant will be reduced over time [Aktivitetsstöd minskas med tiden] The more days you receive an activity grant, the smaller it will be. For days 1-200 of your unemployment compensation period, you will receive up to 80 per cent of your daily benefits. For days 201-300, you will receive up to 70 per cent of your daily benefits. For day 301 and afterwards, you will receive up to 65 per cent of your daily benefits. If you have a child under 18, the grant will be reduced more slowly. For days 1-200, you will receive up to 80 per cent of your daily benefits. For days 201-450, you will receive up to 70 per cent of your daily benefits. For day 451 and afterwards, you will receive up to 65 per cent of your daily benefits. Special rules if you are under 25 when you start the programme [Särskilda regler för dig som är under 25 år när du börjar i programmet] The three levels of activity grants are different if you are under 25. For days 1-100, you will receive up to 80 per cent of your daily benefits. For days 101-200, you will receive up to 70 per cent of your daily benefits. For day 201 and afterwards, you will receive up to 65 per cent of your daily benefits. If you have a child under 18, the grant will be reduced more slowly. For days 1-200, you will receive up to 80 per cent of your daily benefits. For days 201-300, you will receive up to 70 per cent of your daily benefits. For day 301 and afterwards, you will receive up to 65 per cent of your daily benefits. If you do not qualify for unemployment insurance [Om du inte uppfyller villkoren för a-kassa] If you do not qualify for unemployment insurance and are participating in a programme full-time, you will receive an activity grant of SEK 223 per day. If you are participating in the job and development guarantee programme [För dig som deltar i jobb- och utvecklingsgarantin] If you are participating in the job and development guarantee programme, you will receive an activity grant for up to 450 days. Any previous days for which you received development assistance are included. You can receive a higher activity grant if you obtain unemployment insurance or apply to Alfa-kassan [Du kan få högre aktivitetsstöd om du går med i a-kassan eller Alfa-kassan] Alfa-kassan is unemployment insurance for everyone, regardless of occupation. If you obtain unemployment insurance or apply to Alfa-Kassan, meet the qualifications and participate in a programme full-time, your activity grant will be raised to at least SEK 320 per day. The Swedish Public Employment Service (Arbetsförmedlingen) has forms for applying to Alfa-kassan. Notify Arbetsförmedlingen if you obtain unemployment insurance or apply to Alfa-kassan. More information about Alfa-kassan is available at www.alfakassan.se 3 (11)
If you are a young person and have a disability [Om du är ung med funktionsnedsättning] If you are a young person, have a disability and have been participating in a labour market programme full-time for 12 months, you are eligible for an activity grant of at least SEK 475 per day. Read more about disabilities and labour market programmes at www.arbetsformedlingen.se. Information sent to your unemployment insurance fund affects your activity grant [Uppgifter till din a-kassa påverkar ditt aktivitetsstöd] If you have unemployment insurance and you have not received unemployment compensation or an activity grant for 25 weeks or more, you must send certain information to your unemployment insurance fund. Contact the fund to find out what information you need to send. Make sure to turn in your cash card to the fund as soon as possible for the period before you start the programme so that Försäkringskassan can correctly determine the amount of your activity grant. If you do not pay your unemployment insurance premium [Om du inte betalar avgiften till a-kassan] If you do not pay your unemployment insurance premium, you may no longer qualify for unemployment compensation. If you receive a larger activity grant than you are eligible for because you are no longer paying your unemployment insurance premium, you may have to repay. Your income can affect the size of your activity grant [Dina inkomster kan påverka aktivitetsstödet] Your activity grant may be reduced if you have one of the following types of income: sickness compensation or activity compensation national old-age pension special pension supplement special survivor s pension occupational pension annuity from occupational injury insurance parental benefit rehabilitation benefit salary, severance pay or other employment benefits study allowance, student aid or TUFF compensation from CSN You cannot receive an activity grant and introduction benefit at the same time. 4 (11)
Examples of types of income that do not reduce your activity grant [Exempel på inkomster som inte minskar aktivitetsstödet] Among the types of income that do not reduce your activity grant are: supplement to cover the difference between your activity grant and your previous salary housing supplement residential supplement childcare allowance disability allowance premium pension for survivor annuity from private insurance distribution from private pension savings Activity grant and childraising allowance [Aktivitetsstöd och vårdnadsbidrag] You cannot receive childraising allowance at the same time as you or the child s other parent is receiving an activity grant. Frequently asked questions [Vanliga frågor] What should I do if I get sick? [Vad gör jag om jag blir sjuk?] Notify Försäkringskassan and Arbetsförmedlingen the first day you are sick. If somebody other than Arbetsförmedlingen has arranged your programme, notify them as well. Notify Försäkringskassan at www.forsakringskassan.se or phone our service line at 020-524 524. Försäkringskassan will send a form to your home address. If you are sick for more than seven days, turn in a doctor s certificate in order to continue receiving your activity grant. What are the rules when I am sick? [Vad gäller om jag blir sjuk?] The first day that you are sick and do not participate in the programme at all is a qualifying period. In other words, you will not receive development allowance or an activity grant for that day. Försäkringskassan determines whether you are eligible for development allowance or an activity grant the same way as for sickness benefit. This means that you will receive development allowance or an activity grant if your ability to work is reduced due to sickness. If you are working in addition to the programme, you may also be entitled to sick pay from your employer at the beginning of your illness. You cannot receive development allowance or an activity grant if you are absent from your programme to participate in preventive treatment. 5 (11)
What happens if my child gets sick? [Vad gäller om mitt barn blir sjukt (VAB)?] You can receive development allowance or an activity grant for days that you are at home taking care of a sick child the entire time. Development allowance or an activity grant are subject to the same rules as temporary parental benefit. To receive development allowance or an activity grant while taking care of a sick child, send in one of the following forms: Försäkran aktivitetsstöd/utvecklingsersättning vid tillfällig vård av barn (FK6420) (Assurance Activity Support/Development Allowance during Temporary Care of a Child) Försäkran aktivitetsstöd/utvecklingsersättning vid tillfällig vård av barn överlåtelse (FK6422) (Assurance Activity Support/Development Allowance during Temporary Care of a Child Transfer) All forms are available at www.forsakringskassan.se. You may also order the forms by phoning our service line at 020-524 524. What are the rules if I am working? [Vad gäller om jag arbetar?] You will not receive an activity grant for any days that you work instead of participating in the programme. Your activity grant will be reduced if you work part of the day instead of participating in the programme. If you work in addition to the programme, your activity grant will not be reduced. What are the rules if I am expecting or planning to adopt a child? [Vad gäller om jag ska få barn eller ska adoptera? You can receive development assistance or an activity grant for 10 days in connection with the birth or adoption of a child. To obtain development allowance or an activity grant, fill out the form entitled Försäkran aktivitetsstöd/utvecklingsersättning i samband med barns födelse/adoption (FK6424) (Assurance Activity Grant/Development Allowance in Connection with the Birth or Adoption of a Child). What are the rules if I want to take care of a closely related person? [Vad gäller om jag ska vårda en närstående?] If you are not participating in the programme at all in order to take care of a closely related person, Försäkringskassan will determine your eligibility for development allowance or an activity grant in the same way as for benefit for care of closely related persons. What are the rules if I am a disease carrier? [Vad gäller om jag är smittbärare?] If you are completely absent from the programme because you are a disease carrier, Försäkringskassan will determine your eligibility for development allowance or an activity grant in the same way as for disease carrier s allowance. 6 (11)
What are the rules for holiday or leave from the programme? [Vad gäller vid lov eller ledighet från programmet?] Assuming you have reached agreement with the arranger of your programme, you are generally entitled to development allowance or an activity grant during short breaks. The length of the break during which you can receive development allowance or an activity grant depends upon the programme you are participating in. Labour market training programme [Arbetsmarknadsutbildning] If you are participating in a labour market training programme, you may be eligible for development allowance of an activity grant during short breaks in connection with holidays in September-May. You can receive development allowance or an activity grant for up to 10 days in June-August. Job and development guarantee programme [Jobb- och utvecklingsgarantin] If you are participating in the job and development guarantee programme, you may be eligible for up to 20 days of development allowance or an activity grant over a period of 12 months. The period begins on the first day of the programme. If you have been assigned to the programme several consecutive times, the period begins with the first time. Business start-up grant [Stöd till start av näringsverksamhet] If you are participating in the business start-up grant programme, you are not eligible for development allowance or an activity grant during breaks. Introduction to working life [Arbetslivsintroduktion] If you are participating in the introduction to working life programme, you are not eligible for development allowance or an activity grant during breaks. Other labour market programmes [Övriga arbetsmarknadspolitiska program] If you are participating in a programme not described above, you are eligible for development allowance or an activity grant when the business that is training you is closed or during other temporary breaks. Arbetsförmedlingen must approve the break. You may receive development allowance or an activity grant for up to 10 days from June to August. 7 (11)
If you are a young person and have a disability [Om du är ung med funktionsnedsättning] If you are a young person and have a disability, you may be eligible for an activity grant for up to 25 days of break over a period of 12 months. Leave of absence to take care of an important personal matter [Ledighet för enskild angelägenhet av vikt] You can receive development allowance or an activity grant during a short leave of absence to take care of an important personal matter if the leave has been approved by the arranger of your programme. Among possible important personal matters are funerals, estate inventories, doctor s appointments, moving, going to Arbetsförmedlingen, seeing your employer or taking a driving test. Generally speaking, you can continue receiving an activity grant for up to three days of leave. When is the money paid? [När betalas pengarna ut?] Development allowance and an activity grant are paid out monthly in arrears. There is no fixed payment date. Försäkringskassan ordinarily pays 14 days after receiving your assurance. The money is generally deposited to your bank or PlusGiro account. You can register an account on Mina sidor (My Pages) at www.forsakringskassan.se or on your assurance. You can decide when your money is paid out [Du kan själv bestämma när pengarna ska betalas ut] The first time you send in your assurance, you can decide approximately when you will receive your money. For example, you can specify a shorter period than one month. You can affect your period only the first time. Example [Exempel] Anna starts a programme on 1 January. Since she wants to receive her activity grant before the 28th of every month, she writes 1-11 January on her first assurance and sends it in. Her letter arrives at Försäkringskassan on 14 January. Processing the payment takes 14 days, so Anna receives her money on 28 January. Anna cannot affect her February payment she writes 12 January 11 February and receives her money on 28 February. If you are reassigned to the same or different programme that is directly connected to a previous period, the monthly payments continue and you cannot choose a shorter payment cycle. 8 (11)
Introduction to working life programme [Arbetslivsintroduktion] When you no longer receive compensation from health insurance [När du inte längre får ersättning från sjukförsäkringen] When you have received sickness benefit or sickness compensation for the maximum amount of time, send in the form entitled Intyg om att ersättningen från sjukförsäkringen tar slut (FK7285) (Certificate that Compensation from Health Insurance Has Ended) to your unemployment insurance fund. Phone Försäkringskassan to order the form. Your daily allowance from unemployment insurance is set on the basis of your previous sickness benefit qualifying income, or on the basis of your assumed income if you have been receiving sickness compensation. When is the money paid out? [När betalas pengarna ut?] If you start between the 1st and 20th of a month, you will receive your money around the 27th. If you start between the 21st and 31st, you will generally receive your money early the next month. You do not need to send in an assurance for the first payment, but you must send one in for the days that have already been paid before you can receive your second payment. Starting with the second payment, you will receive your money around the 27th of the month. You can choose to receive your money after you have sent in your assurance. Phone Försäkringskassan to find out how to do that. Försäkringskassan verifies retroactively [Försäkringskassan prövar i efterhand] Because your payment is sent in advance, you may receive too much money if you were on leave or absent from the introduction to working life programme. If you have received too much money, we will send you a demand for repayment. After the introduction to working life programme is over [Efter arbetslivsintroduktionen] In order to make sure that you receive your money as soon as possible when you start a new programme directly related to introduction to working life, Försäkringskassan processes your assurance of attendance faster and generally pays seven days after it has been received. You may also fill out your first two assurances of attendance for a period of less than one month. That way you will not have to wait as long for your money. 9 (11)
Other information [Övrig information] Tax if you are self-employed [Skatt för dig som är egen företagare] Försäkringskassan withholds tax even if you are self-employed and have an F-tax certificate. If you have FA-tax and want to cite your F-tax certificate, notify us in writing. You will receive a statement of earnings and tax deductions in January. The statement will tell you how much daily allowance (sickness benefit, activity grant, etc.) Försäkringskassan has paid during the year and how much tax has been withheld. Sickness benefit qualifying income [Sjukpenninggrundande inkomst] You retain the sickness benefit qualifying income to which you are entitled at the beginning of a programme as long as you continue participating in it. With the exception of parental benefit and rehabilitation benefit, however, you cannot receive any compensation based on the income while you are participating in the programme. If you are unemployed, you must notify Arbetsförmedlingen as soon as you complete or drop out of the programme in order to retain your sickness benefit qualifying income. If you are receiving income from employment in addition to the programme, you can obtain sickness benefit, temporary parental benefit and other compensation based on the income. When applying for sickness benefit or another type of compensation, let Försäkringskassan know if your income from employment has changed while you were participating in the programme. Försäkringskassan and Arbetsförmedlingen check [Försäkringskassan och Arbetsförmedlingen kontrollerar] Försäkringskassan and Arbetsförmedlingen perform spot checks, targeted checks and random checks of attendance, absence and reasons for absence. The arranger of the programme in which you are participating is obligated to provide information about your attendance and absence when Försäkringskassan requests it. Försäkringskassan also checks the information that you submit. Such information may concern income, absence from work, marital status or where you live. We share information with other authorities, and we link and match our registers with information from CSN, the unemployment insurance funds, the Swedish Tax Agency, etc. Intentionally submitting erroneous information or neglecting to notify Försäkringskassan of changes that may affect your right to compensation may be a criminal offence. Försäkringskassan reports all suspected benefit fraud to the police. 10 (11)
Additional information [Mer information] The fact sheet is not a legal text on this topic. You can also use our self-service at www.forsakringskassan.se to take care of a number of matters quickly and easily. For instance, you can sick-list yourself, fill out the assurance of attendance and change your bank account number. Certificates, forms and brochures can be ordered by dialling our self-service line at 020-524 524. You can also file certain applications. Keep in mind that you can obtain additional information from www.arbetsformedlingen.se and the website of your unemployment insurance fund. Questions? [Frågor?] If you have questions, you can use Hanna, our digital online assistant. She will answer the most frequently asked questions about our insurance and services, and she will point you in the direction of the information you are looking for. You can also phone our Customer Centre directly at 0771-524 524 or the National Relay Service for Text Telephony at 90 160. 11 (11)