Very confused about Kela and what I am entitled to!

[Amandine.K]

Hi everybody,

I am right now on maternity leave which will expire on May 15th, 2009. I am planning on taking a parental leave after that and it seems like I have to apply within the 6 months I want this leave to start so...

The website is very confusing. Before my maternity leave started I was on a fixed-term contract which expired on June 30th. My leave started on July 3rd. So basically am I considered unemployed?

Child care leave - that only applies if you're employed right? It's not a financial help, just a guarantee you'll have you job back at the end of the leave. Did I get that right? So in my situation no need to apply for that I guess...

I would have to apply for Child home care allowance I guess? We live in Helsinki, would I be entitled to the Helsinki supplement? Do you apply for it seperately or is it something delt by Kela?

It is somehow very confusing so any help to see things a bit clearer is appreciated

Kiitos

Amandine

[Gigi]

Hi Amandine,

I am in a same kind of situation. My contract ended 31st of July and my maternity leave started on 30th of October. In between I have been unemployed.

Unfortunately I haven't got a clue about the English names... But this is my version of what they have told you with the Finnish terms.

From 30.10.08 till 07.03.09, I am entitled to äitiysraha (counted on my incomes of 2006)
From 08.03.09 till 14.09.09, I am entitled to vanhempainraha (also counted on my incomes of 2006)

After the 14.09 I have 3 options:
1) apply for a job and be so lucky to find one and start working
2) try to apply for a job and subscribe myself as unemployed
3) apply for hoitovapaa (which means that I am not available on the jobmarket)

This is at least what they have been telling me. The tyävoimatoimisto even already suggested that I might want to take hoitovapaa. I am not sure what I want yet. Let's first get this baby be born.

About the Helsinki supplement I don't know anything, as I live far away for Helsinki
But if I can help you in anyway I am more then willing to help!

GIGI

[Amandine.K]

Thanks so much Gigi! That helps a lot. So the hoitovapaa, are you getting money from it? That would be what I'm looking for. It does seem like I have to fill the child home care claim in any case. This is so complicated!

[Gigi]

You are entitled for some money when you stay home with your child, so in "hoitovapaa". And to my best knowledge, you have to apply for it. They money is of course not fantastic, but it is something

I don't know how good your Finnish is, but here are the links to the KELA website in Finnish, where they explain about hoitovapaa.

http://www.kela.fi/in/internet/suomi.ns ... enDocument

http://www.kela.fi/in/internet/suomi.ns ... enDocument

And the application form: http://www.kela.fi/in/internet/lomake.n ... le/WH1.pdf

I hope the links work! Otherwise I would advice to take a look yourself, or just go and visit the KELA office. (which might be an adventure, living in Helsinki. Here we have a small office, with no queues at all)

And I have 2 Finnish friends who were/are in the same kind of situation as you (and I). And I know they are now both in hoitovapaa. They also both happen to be pregnant for their 2nd child and that is the reason why they haven't been looking for a job, because the hoitovapaa can overcome those couple of months between their 1st child's vanhempainloma and their 2nd child's äitiysloma! Well-timed I would say!

GIGI