Italy - Family benefits
This chapter deals with family benefits:
- The Single and Universal Allowance for Children (Assegno Unico e Universale per i Figli), which guarantees support for all family units with dependent children, is granted based on the family unit’s means as assessed through the ISEE (equivalent economic situation indicator). It is paid by the INPS.
- Kindergarten Voucher (Bonus asilo nido).
In what situation can I claim?
Dependent on certain conditions, you are entitled to the Single and Universal Allowance for Children if you have dependent children in your family unit as indicated in a valid ISEE form.
Children over 18 of age can submit their own claim.
Family in receipt of the Guaranteed Minimum Income (Reddito di cittadinanza) are granted the Single and universal Allowance for children without having to submit the relevant claim.
In addition to you, your family unit includes all the family members as registered upon the date you submitted the relevant Declaration (so called Dichiarazione Sostitutiva Unica) in view of the issuing of the ISEE:
- your spouse or your partner in civil union;
- your underage child;
- your non-cohabiting adult child, younger than 26 and dependent for the purposes of income tax on natural persons (IRPEF);
- your cohabiting adult child;
- other person/s included in the family unit.
Kindergarten Voucher: is also granted to parents of disabled children under the form of a one-off lump sum payment based on their ISEE.
What conditions do I need to meet?
The new Single and Universal Allowance for Children is defined as universal, i.e. a minimum amount is granted to every family unit even if no ISEE has been submitted or in case the ISEE value exceeds €43,240 per year.
Recipients of the Single and Universal Allowance for Children are:
- your underage children (including adoptive ones), residing and domiciled in Italy;
- third-Country nationals’ children whose parent (the one requesting the benefit) has been legally residing on the Italian territory while holding either an EU-type long stay permit, or a work permit to perform an over-six-month employment contract, or else, a residence permit for research purposes allowing to stay in Italy for more than six months;
- your adult children (up to the age of 21 and no age limit, if disabled) upon condition that they are:
- attending either a school, academic course or professional training while residing and being domiciled in Italy;
- earning an annual income lower than €8,000 in relation to either a traineeship or a gainful activity;
- registered as unemployed at a job centre and actively searching for a job;
- volunteering for the social services (so called, servizio civile universale).
Tax deductions
They can be applied only in relation to dependent children between 21 and 24 years if the children’s personal gross income is not higher than €4,000 per year. After the age of 24, they continue to be applied if the children’s personal gross income is not higher than €2,840.51 per year.
Kindergarten Voucher can be granted even though the claimant either failed to submit the ISEE or the one he/she submitted was not accurate, in which case a minimum lump sum of €1,500 per year would still be granted.
What am I entitled to and how can I claim?
The monthly amount of the Single and Universal Allowance for Children may vary from a maximum of €189.2 (if your family unit’s ISEE value is up to €16,215) to a minimum of €54.1 (granted either if your ISEE value is higher than €43,240 or if you fail to submit it). It also depends on the number of children and on family composition, namely it varies:
- from €189.2 to €54.1 with 1 child;
- from €378.4 to €108.2 with 2 children;
- from €659.5 to €178.5 with 3 children (an additional amount is granted in relation to the third child for a family unit with more than two children);
- from €1,090.6 to €398.8 with 4 children (family units with 4 children and over are granted an additional amount of €150);
- €54.1 per child: if no ISEE has been submitted or in case the ISEE value exceeds €43,240 per year.
The benefit can be increased by 50% for children under one year of age.
A 50% increase is also granted to family units with three children and over, for each child aged from 1 to 3, upon condition that the ISEE value is up to €43,240 (indexed annually based on the consumers’ price index). The same percentage increase also applies to the lump-sum granted to family units with four dependent children.
Disabled children are granted a fixed amount additional sum varying based on the gravity of the child impairment. Disabled children over 21 are granted the same allowance as minor children, based on the ISEE value.
The amount of the benefit is increased by €21.6 per child if the mother is 21 or under.
It is also increased by a one-off extra amount, varying from €32.4 to null based on the ISEE value, when granted to family units where both parents are in employment.
Kindergarten Voucher: annual amount of €3,000 granted to families with an ISEE value of €25,000; €2,500 granted to families with an ISEE value between €25,001 up to €40,000; €1,500 granted to families with an ISEE value higher than €40,000.
Alternative forms of home care-assistance for an annual amount of €3,000 are granted to families with children under 3 years of age and an ISEE value of €25,000 upon submission of the relevant certification assessing that the child cannot attend nurseries because of a serious chronic illness.
Jargon busters
- INPS: National Institute for Social Security.
- Employee organisation and tax assistance centres (Patronati, CAF): authorised centres that assist the user with compiling and electronically submitting a benefit claim (this assistance is totally free of charge).
- ISEE: equivalent economic situation indicator (allows for assessment of families' economic circumstances and takes into account income, assets and composition of the household).
- Single and Universal Allowance for Children (Assegno Unico e Universale per i Figli): income support to raise children for all family units.
- Maternity leave: period of obligatory absence from work granted to the worker during pregnancy and post-natal recovery.
- Kindergarten Voucher: granted to help meeting the expenses of child-raising.
- ISTAT: Institute for National Statistics.
Forms you may need to fill in
You may submit your claim through the INPS website here.
The Employee organisations offer free assistance.
Know your rights
Further information is available on both the Ministry of Labour and Social Policies website and on the INPS website.
See below for links to European Commission publications on social security coordination:
Who do you need to contact?
National Social Security Institute (INPS)
Via Ciro il Grande 21
00144 Roma RM ITALY
Tel. +39 06803164 (normal operator rates apply)
Multi-channel Contact Centre - Toll-free number: +803.164 (free of charge) Website: http://www.inps.it
Official websites of Professionals’ Pension Funds
Employee organisations and tax assistance centres (Patronati, CAF)