INPS

The benefit is paid to dependent workers who have been made redundant and that, limited to the Credit and Co-operative Credit Funds, do not meet the eligibility requirements for the special allowance. The benefit is provided on the basis of the existing and maintained status of involuntary unemployment.

Start date and duration

The maximum duration of the emergency allowance is 24 months, including periods of receipt of unemployment allowance and is subject to the condition of involuntary unemployment.

The emergency allowance is subject to the same rules as apply for the suspension, forfeiture and starting date of the NASpI benefit, both for coexistence with unemployment allowance and for receipt of the emergency allowance only.

As for the supplementary allowance, however, the duration of the supplementary benefit is the same as the period of receipt of the NASpI allowance, extended by a maximum of six months.

What am I entitled to?

The emergency/supplementary allowance is paid as a supplement to the unemployment allowance (NASpI) and is subject to its recognition and follows its rules (existence of requirements, suspension, forfeiture, etc.).

The amount of the emergency allowance is calculated as a percentage of the last gross monthly base payment due to the worker, as 80%, 70% or 60% depending on the amount of the annual base payment, within the limits of the monthly minimum amounts. For 2018, these amounts are €2,404.74, €2,708.92 and €3,791.46 for the Credit Fund, and €2,306.41, €3,102.19 and €3,608.13 for the Co-operative Credit Fund per month. The amount calculated on 80% of the gross monthly payment is shown gross of the reduction provided for by Article 26, Law no. 41 of 28 February 1986.

The amounts indicated above are revalued on an annual basis in accordance with the criteria and procedures currently in force for the wage compensation fund.

During the period of receipt of unemployment allowance, the worker shall be paid an emergency allowance for which the gross amount is reduced by the amount corresponding to the gross value of the unemployment allowance. Conversely, during the period following the end of the NASpI subsidy, the full amount shall be paid as an emergency allowance.

The supplementary allowance, however, for the whole duration of receipt of the NASpI benefit and for the 6 months afterwards, is equal to the amount of the same NASpI due to the worker for the first 3 months, plus a further €173 per month.

During the receipt period of the emergency/supplementary allowance, the Family allowance is not owed.

If the emergency allowance is used, the employer is obliged to pay an emergency contribution equal to half of the financing approved by the fund. Once the financing has been approved by the Fund's Management Committee for the entire amount of the benefit, the approval shall be communicated to the company for the purposes of paying the emergency contribution.

For the payment of the emergency contribution, the company is obliged to make a transfer to the special accounts, relating to the state's provincial treasury, of the office where the Claim for an emergency allowance was submitted.

In case of access to the supplementary allowance of the Public Transport Fund, the employer is obliged, for the entire duration of the benefit, to pay a special monthly contribution of 30% of the last payment, which is taxable for social security purposes, of the workers concerned.

The management of the administrative flow underlying the disbursement of the emergency/supplementary allowance consists of two phases. The first is a preliminary investigation, carried out by the General Management, aimed at issuing the authorisation resolution by the Fund's Management Committee. The second is for the direct payment of the benefit to the beneficiary workers, by the competent offices which, for the same worker, are in charge of the NASpI Claim.

The procedure will automatically make the monthly payment only after the same worker has been paid the NASpI, the amount of which is required for calculating what is due for the difference as an emergency/supplementary allowance.

The contribution relating to the Credit and Co-operative Credit Funds' emergency allowance is calculated based on the last monthly gross base payment due to the worker in a constant employment relationship. The contribution relating to the Public Transport Fund's supplementary allowance is calculated in accordance with Article 40 of Law no. 183 of 04 November 2010. The contribution payable is useful for obtaining the right to a pension, including an early retirement pension, and for determining the pension amount.

For the period of receipt of the allowance only, the fund shall provide for the payment of the related contribution to the management with which the worker is registered. This is calculated by applying the funding rate, in force from time to time in the aforementioned management, to the last gross base monthly payment due to the worker in a constant employment relationship.

During the receipt period of the NASpI benefit and the allowance, however, payment of the related contribution is excluded. For such a period, the imputed contribution shall be credited according to the general regulations.

The required funding, including both the amount of the allowance and the relevant contribution, shall be evaluated by INPS. In the evaluation of the funding amount, the amounts to be paid to the workers concerned as unemployment allowances must also be taken into account.

The granting of the funding is ordered by the respective Fund Directors' Committees by means of a compliant resolution, adopted by the majority of those present.

If the implementation of the decisions adopted by the Committee reveals any claims of illegitimacy, the determination may be suspended by the General Director for the INPS. The suspension measure, with an indication of the rule that is considered to have been violated, must be adopted within five days and submitted to the President of the INPS who shall, within the next three months, establish whether to further pursue the decision or to annul it. After that period, the decision shall be enforceable.

The emergency/supplementary allowance, even if governed by the provisions on the NASpI benefit for starting date, suspension and forfeiture, nevertheless represents a supplementary service governed by special provisions. Therefore, if the worker receiving the unemployment allowance, and the emergency/supplementary allowance in addition, goes on maternity leave, the right to the maternity benefit will be fully granted in accordance with the NASpI benefit regulations. At the end of the period of suspension on grounds of compulsory maternity, payment of both the unemployment allowance and the allowance shall resume for the remaining period due at the time when the benefit and allowance were suspended. Conversely, a worker who has completed the regular period of unemployment allowance and, remaining unemployed, is only in receipt of the allowance, shall not be entitled to maternity treatment.

Requirements

The right to the emergency allowance is subject to both the completion of the current contractual procedures, which are aimed at preventing collective conflicts and that are legally provided for the processes that determine the reduction of employment levels, as well as the additional condition that the latter be concluded by a company agreement. If an agreement is not reached, the company may not access the claimed service.

For the supplementary allowance, however, the company will be able to access the benefit even if no overall agreement is reached as a result of the examination and comparison.

How can I claim?

The claim for access to the emergency/supplementary allowance must be submitted by the company to the local INPS office in charge online by using the dedicated service (Circular no. 203 of 18 December 2015 and announcement no. 3183 of 25 July 2016, Circular no. 176 of 28 November 2017).

Subsequently, it will be examined by the Fund's Management Committee, which has the task of deciding on the granting of benefits, taking into account the chronological order of claim submissions and the fund's available resources.

The claim must be submitted with the trade union agreement/communication and the list of workers involved must be submitted as an attachment.