Financial assistance for parents with a disabled child

If your child is born with a disability or is diagnosed with a disability in the first eight weeks after birth, special maternity protection regulations apply. The protection period is extended from eight to twelve weeks. Maternity benefits, which are used to secure the mother's income, are also extended accordingly.

Normally, parents receive child benefit up to their 18th birthday. The age limit does not apply to children with disabilities. Child benefit can then also be claimed after the 18th birthday if a child is physically, mentally or emotionally impaired and cannot support themselves. The prerequisite is that the disability occurred before the age of 25 - and the child receives a maximum annual income of 9,408 euros.

Statutory health insurance pays for services for the early detection and treatment of illnesses. These include prescription drugs, remedies such as physiotherapy, occupational therapy, speech therapy and massages, as well as aids such as hearing aids, visual aids, prostheses and wheelchairs. Parents with statutory health insurance receive benefits from the health insurance fund if they are unable to go to work due to their child's illness or need help with care.

Parents of disabled children are entitled to care allowance. The prerequisite for a benefit from statutory long-term care insurance is that one parent has been covered by statutory insurance for at least two years in the ten years prior to the application. The amount of support depends on the level of care required by the child. The level of care is decided by an expert from the health insurance company's medical service.

If the care allowance from the care insurance is not sufficient for care, families in need can receive "care assistance". The prerequisite for this is that they disclose their income and financial circumstances.

From care level 1, you are entitled to a one-off payment of up to 4,000 euros for necessary home modifications. In addition, you are entitled to a monthly relief amount of 125 euros. This can be used, for example, for day care or other respite services.

If a parent falls ill, this hits families with a disabled child particularly hard. In order to ensure the care and nursing of the child as well as the organization of everyday life, the care insurance fund covers the costs of temporary or short-term care.

For children, adolescents and young adults in need of care in care grades 4 and 5 who have not yet reached the age of 25, various improvements to respite care will come into force on January 1, 2024, including the following regulations:

• The maximum duration will be extended to up to eight weeks per calendar year.
• In future, it will be possible to fully reallocate the funds for short-term care to respite care.
• The entitlement to respite care begins earlier and the requirement for a six-month prior care period no longer applies.

The additional financial burden of living with a disabled child is mitigated or offset by tax relief. The disability allowance is particularly important. To be able to claim it, you must be a relative or dependant of the child. A further requirement is that you must have the "H" disability mark (helplessness) or a degree of care of at least 2 and you must care for the child in your home or in the child's home. The amount of the lump sum depends on the degree of disability. The lump sum is increased for children who are helpless, blind or deaf-blind. Extraordinary expenses such as travel costs or building costs for a necessary home conversion are also tax-deductible. If a vehicle is registered in the name of your disabled child, you can save on vehicle tax if you only use the car to drive the child or, for example, to do the shopping for the child's household. You can find detailed information about the care allowance in the brochure Guide for people with disabilities in Chapter 17 "Tax relief" of the Federal Ministry of Labor and on the website of the Finanzverwaltung for North Rhine-Westphalia.

People with disabilities receive so-called compensation for disadvantages caused by their disability. For this, the degree of disability (GdB) and possible characteristics must have been determined. From a GdB of 50, people with disabilities are considered severely disabled and can receive a severely disabled person's pass. Official recognition of a disability entitles the holder to a tax-free allowance and various benefits, depending on the degree of disability. Benefits can include, for example, free local public transport, parking concessions or a reduced broadcasting fee. Many private companies offer further benefits to which there is no legal entitlement. The card can be applied for from the districts and independent cities in North Rhine-Westphalia.

Children with a (potential) disability can receive individual support as part of early intervention from birth until they start school. Various integration assistance services are available for this purpose. Curative education services are of particular importance. These include all measures that enable the child to develop and unfold their personality. Contact the respective regional associations LVR and LWL.

When it's time to start school, parents can apply for school assistance. The costs of the assistance are usually covered by the social welfare office. The school assistant accompanies and supports your child in everyday school life. If your child needs learning aids such as a special computer, the costs will be covered by the health insurance company.

People who suffer from a disability or chronic illness are entitled to what is known as a personal budget. This usually consists of cash benefits. However, those affected can also claim benefits in kind. Parents can also apply for a personal budget for their children from the responsible cost bearers. The cost bearers include the health insurance fund, care insurance fund, pension/accident insurance, pension office, youth welfare office, social welfare office, integration office or the employment agency. The application process can be slow under certain circumstances. Let us help you: The advocacy group Selbstbestimmt Leben in Deutschland e.V. (ISL) offers a nationwide hotline for advice on personal budgets for people with disabilities and their relatives on 030/235935190.

For parents of a disabled child, the age limit for child sickness benefit no longer applies. This means that working parents can take time off even after the child's 12th birthday if they have to look after the sick child. If the child is only likely to live for a few more months, child sickness benefit is paid indefinitely.

Under certain conditions, the parent providing care receives contributions to the statutory pension fund from the long-term care insurance if the child is classified as care grade 2 or higher.

Home help is paid for by statutory health insurance if parents with a disabled child are unable to manage the household alone due to hospitalization, preventive care or nursing care.

In order to recover from the stresses of everyday life and recharge their batteries, parents are entitled to a parental cure at regular intervals. The cure can take place alone or with a child. A medical certificate is required.

The pension insurance providers provide medical rehabilitation services for children who are impaired by chronic illnesses in particular. The measures can be carried out on an inpatient or outpatient basis or as a combination of both. The basis for entitlement to child rehabilitation is a corresponding contribution payment by a parent to the statutory pension insurance scheme. It is possible to take an accompanying person with you if this is necessary for the success of the child's rehabilitation. Further information can be obtained from Deutsche Rentenversicherung on 0800 1000 4800 or on the website.