Family benefits
Preconditions for applying
The following preconditions when applying for family benefits and allowances must be met:
- The parent and the child must have a valid residence permit or residence (residents of the EU).
- The parent and the child must have a registration of residence. Read more about registration of residence.
- As a single parent, you need to submit your child’s birth certificate (there will be a check that there is no data about the child’s other parent on the certificate).
- If the child is 19 and studies abroad, you need to submit a school certificate.
- If you are applying for an allowance for a disabled child, you need to submit a health certificate to confirm disability.
Please submit your application as soon as possible, because:
- The right to the benefit or allowance starts from the date of entitlement or from when the application was submitted,
- Family benefits are paid out retrospectively, but, at the maximum, for six months preceding the application filing month.
Check if your city or municipality government has additional benefits for children. Here, you'll find contact details of Estonia’s city or municipality governments and the Tallinn City District Governments.
Important to know concerning this step
Please contact the Social Insurance Board via e-mail or come to the nearest Social Insurance Board customer service point (see contact addresses below).
If you do not have a child's birth certificate, please order a new one from the country of birth or inform the Social Insurance Board of the country where the child was born, and we will try to get the information.
The general requirement for the certificate is for it to be translated into English and apostilled. However, it is recommended contacting the Social Insurance Board first to confirm the specific requirements for your individual case.
If you do not have a child disability certificate but wish to get subsidy then you must acquire such certificate by passing the medical commission in Estonia. First, you need to contact your family physician.
If you don’t have your local family physician in Estonia, go and see the finding family physician service.
If you have any questions about family allowances or applying for them, please call the Social Insurance Board’s information phone line: 612 1360 (open Mon-Fri at 9:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m.).
If you have an edge case and cannot find an answer for your specific situation, then please do one of the following:
- Send us a message through self-service;
- Write an email explaining your situation to [email protected]
- Call the Social Insurance Board’s information phone line: 612 1360 (open Mon-Fri, 9:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m.);
- Visit the nearest client service centre.
You can communicate with the Social Insurance Board in English, Estonian and Russian languages.
References
Contacts
The Social Insurance Board is a governmental authority that works to ensure the self-sufficiency and well-being of people in Estonia. We speak Estonian, English and Russian.