COVID-19 emergency baby-sitting bonus

For 2020, from 05 March, as a result of the suspension of childcare services and educational activities in schools of all kinds, Decree-Law no. 18 of 17 March 2020 (“Cura Italia” decree) provided, in Articles 23 and 25, a specific parental leave for the care of children aged 12 and under, which may be used for a period, either continuous or divided into fractions, of a maximum duration of 15 days.

As an alternative to parental leave, the possibility of choosing the corresponding bonus for paying for baby-sitting services is provided.

The baby-sitting bonus is intended for parents (alternately among them) belonging to the following categories of workers:

• private sector employees;
• workers registered exclusively with the Separate Pension Scheme (referred to in Article 2, paragraph 26, of Law no. 335 of 08 August 1995);
• self-employed workers registered with the INPS;
• self-employed workers registered with professional funds (after notification by the respective pension funds of the number of beneficiaries).

As a result of the provisions of Article 25, paragraph 3, of Decree-Law 18/2020, from 05 March 2020 the childcare bonus for children under 12 years of age is also due to civil servants and employees respectively in the accredited public and private healthcare sector, as an alternative to the specific leave they are already taking, who belong to the following categories:

• doctors;
• nurses;
• biomedical laboratory technicians;
• radiology technicians;
• socio-medical workers.

In addition, the baby-sitting bonus is also due to security, defence and public emergency personnel employed for needs related to the COVID-19 epidemiological emergency.

START DATE AND DURATION

The measures shall apply for 2020 only, from 05 March, the date on which the suspension of educational services for children and teaching activities in schools of all levels was ordered by the Council of Ministers' Presidential Decree of 04 March 2020.

WHAT AM I ENTITLED TO?

The baby-sitting bonus is due for an overall maximum of €600 per household, to be used for the provision of care and supervision of children during the period for which school education services are closed.

In the event of multiple children under 12 years, the bonus can also be claimed for all children, provided that the total amount does not exceed €600 for the household.

The benefit is also due to adoptive parents (for national and international adoption and pre-adoptive foster care), provided that, in the household, the other parent (natural or foster) is not a beneficiary of income support instruments for suspension or cessation of employment (NASPI, CIGO, CIGS, etc.), nor are they unemployed or not in employment.

The age limit of 12 years does not apply to children with disabilities who are in a proven serious situation (pursuant to Article 4, paragraph 1 of Law no. 104 of 05 February 1992) that are enrolled in schools of all education levels or housed in day-care centres.

Except for severely handicapped minors, in all other cases the limit of 12 years of age must not be exceeded by 05 March 2020.

The bonus will be paid by the INPS through the Libretto Famiglia (family register). Bonus beneficiaries must be registered on the INPS site in the appropriate dedicated section of the Prestazioni Occasionali > Libretto Famiglia, respectively:

• as a user of the Libretto Famiglia;
• as a provider of baby-sitting services.

After these preliminary steps, once the bonus has been granted by the INPS, the beneficiary parent must make the so-called “appropriation” of the bonus through the Libretto Famiglia within the deadline of 15 calendar days of receiving notification of acceptance of the claim, through the digital channels indicated within the claim. Baby-sitting services carried out from 05 March 2020, for the entire period during which school education services are closed and which have been reported in the appropriate procedure by 31 December 2020, may be remunerated through the Libretto Famiglia.

In the case of civil servants and employees respectively in the accredited public and private healthcare sector, the bonus is granted by the INPS in the overall maximum of € 1,000 per household and is always paid by the INPS through the Libretto Famiglia.

For the benefits referred to in Article 23 of Decree-Law 18/2020, an overall allocation is foreseen, for 2020, of € 1,262.1 million, intended for specific leave and the baby-sitting bonus for private sector workers, registered with the Separate Pension Scheme, and self-employed workers. For public workers in the sectors covered by the law, the baby-sitting bonus is granted within the overall limit of € 30 million. Claims for bonuses will be accepted, as required by law, based on the chronological order in which they are submitted.

Upon reaching the volume of claims that exhausts the indicated allocation, the subsequent claims received by the INPS will be admitted and registered subject to acceptance, provided that there are still amounts available.

For any further information please refer to the INPS Circular no. 44 of 24 March 2020.

How can I claim?

The claim can be submitted online using the dedicated service.

Alternatively, claims can be made by:

• Telephoning the contact centre on +39 803 164 (free from Italian landlines) or +39 06 164 164 from mobile phones;
• using electronic services offered freely by patronage institutes.