Financial assistance for caregivers
Being a caregiver, you can make use of different financial aids. Sometimes you can apply for these reimbursements yourself, and sometimes it is the person you’re taking care of who has to apply for you, and you will share the reimbursement later on. Unfortunately we’ve found that there are far too few financial aids available for caregivers. What you, as a caregiver, can actually get in terms of financial assistance? In this article we’ll line up your options.
Tax-free gift
Perhaps the person you’re caring for wishes to reimburse you for your care, or wants to give you a yearly amount. That is allowed and tax-free, as long as you stay within the norm of a tax-free donation.
On the website of the tax authority you can check to see how much money you may receive as a tax-free gift. The amount depends on the (family) relationship between you and the person to whom you provide care.
Caregiver appreciation
Your municipality annually reserves an amount for the ‘appreciation of caregivers’. This is mandatory for all municipalities in The Netherlands – as established by the Social Support Act (Wmo). The amount of money and the manner in which it is given out varies, depending on the municipality.
One municipality gives a sum of money or a gift voucher, another offers for instance help with housekeeping chores or organizes an activity on the annual caregivers day.
You can easily check which financial aid is available to you on the website of your municipality. Using your search engine, just type the name of your municipality and the words ‘caregiver appreciation’.
Additional costs
As a caregiver you often have additional expenses, for example travel and transportation costs, expenses for additional childcare, telephone costs or money you spend on extra laundry detergent. The tax authority uses the word “meerkosten” (additional costs) for this.
As a caregiver you can not deduct these additional expenses, but the person you take care of might be able to. Additional expenses include the extra costs that someone who suffers from a chronic illness or disability has. For example their own contribution for care and support, transportation, medical aids and adjustments. Your care recipient may be able to get a refund from the tax authority on part of the additional costs. He or she can then share that refund with you, their caregiver.
To learn more about additional costs you can check the tax authority website ‘Meerkosten’.
Double child benefit
Do you take care of a child living at home who needs intensive care? In that case you might be able to apply for double child benefit.
To learn more about double child benefit, check the SVB website. Here you’ll find all the information about the conditions and how to apply.
In addition to these general reimbursements, you, as a caregiver, can receive compensation for your travel and transportation costs. You can read more about this in the article ‘Reimbursement of travel and transportation expenses for caregivers’.
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