Parental Kela benefits for expats.

[raj2134]

Hi,
I and my wife are relocated to Finland for 2 years.

We came here in Jan 2007.
We both are working and we have Kela card and SSN.

And the news is, now we are expecting a baby

1. I want to know what Kela benefits are we eligible for (Kela site is pretty
confusing and doesn't give information regarding expats).
Are the benefits which are mentioned on site applicable to us or there
are different rules for foreigners in Finland?

2. Do we need to inform some authorities to avail the benefits. If so how?

3. Are the maternity benefits from Kela and my organization different.
e.g. can we have parental leaves from Kela and my company
separately or those are inclusive?

4. Should we visit the public health care center or private like Mehilainen
My insurance policy covers the pregnancy expenses but to certain
limit. So roughly how much would it cost in private hospital.
Actually public health care center is pretty close to my house so I am
inclined for it atleast for initial checkups.

I know I am being too inquisitive, but this is our first baby and we are away from home in a foreign land.

Any word of suggestion is welcome and we really appreciate

[Sara]

Congratulations!

I just had my first baby 2 weeks ago so Ill tell you how things went.

Firstly your wife needs to see someone at your local Neuvola, they deal with all pregnancy stuff. They will see her every month for a check and more often towards the end of the pregnancy. They also take care of refering her to the hospital she will have the baby and go for the scans.

Later in the pregnancy Neuvola will give your wife a certificate of pregnancy. Then you fill in a few kela forms and take that to Kela along with the certificate. They will let you know how much maternity money they will pay your wife and also let you know if you can have the 'baby box' or 'box' money - whichever you choose. The baby box is full of clothes and other useful stuff which is much better than the money you can have in place of it.

I had my baby in Jorvi, it cost €26 a day which I assume is the same for the other public hospitals. The care is so good I wouldnt even consider going private as an option unless I was swimming in money!

[Rosamunda]

First problem... public health care has virtually shut down due to industrial action. I have heard it is currently impossible to make an appointment in the public health care clinics.

If you are working in a big company like Nokia it might be an idea to start off by seeing the company doctor/nurse who could check your wife's blood pressure and give you some basic advice.

If you have a KELA number then normal rules apply, UNLESS you are on the reduced tax scheme (some temporary ex-pats pay less contributions but do not qualify for full benefits eg pension rights) so check with your Human Resources dept, they will know. My guess is that if they have supplied you with a private health scheme you maybe do not qualify for full KELA - but I AM ONLY GUESSING, check with your employer! You really need to find that out first because it will determine exactly what benefits you are entitled to.

Given the current state of affairs in the public health service it might be a good idea to go private for the first few check ups.... you will have to read the small print in your insurance policy.

[Sara]

Neuvola nurses are not effected by the strike so there is no problem going there. Plus you have to have been seen by Neuvola by a certain point in the pregnancy or you wont get the Kela benefits.

At this stage the health care problems are more likely to be not getting the ultrasound scans.