What is it about?
The new Stability Law has confirmed the possibility of requesting the baby bonus for 2023, a contribution that new mothers, adoptive parents, and foster parents can apply for in 2022 and 2023.
The contribution is equal to €160/month for families with an annual income below €7,000 , €120/month for families with an ISEE between €7,000 and €40,000; €80/month for families with an ISEE above €40,000.
Who is it for?
The baby bonus is available to people belonging to the following categories :
- Italian citizens
- Citizens of a member state of the European Union
- Non-EU citizens with a residence permit
How it works
To claim the bonus, you must complete the specific application and submit it to INPS after verifying all the requirements necessary to access the bonus.
Children for whom the bonus is being claimed must be born after January 1, 2022; before this date, the mother is not entitled to the bonus, but she can still request various monthly benefits based on the rules established for newborns.
The form to request the baby bonus can be submitted online, if you have an INPS PIN and device and are comfortable downloading the form directly from the website, or by going in person to the CAF or any Patronato in your city; here the employees will provide you with free assistance and will help you fill out the request and send it directly to INPS online.
The application for the baby bonus must be submitted within 90 days of the child’s birth , or of the child’s entry into the family if it is an adoption or foster care arrangement. Failure to submit the application within the legally established deadline will result in the payment of a fee starting from the date the application is submitted, not from the date of the child’s birth or entry into the family.
While the possibility of using the baby bonus is an advantage, it’s also important to emphasize the limitations of this provision. First, it’s important to know that to claim the baby bonus, the ISEE threshold, the declaration required to apply, must be quite low.
The benefit is paid until the child’s third birthday and, in the case of adoption, until the third year after the child officially becomes part of the family. The bonus will remain in effect as long as the eligibility requirements remain unchanged and there are no changes in income.
20% increase
The 20% increase
If all other requirements are met, the increase is applied based on the following criteria:
- the increase is recognized for each child after the first of the parent requesting the allowance, provided that the requirement of cohabitation between the two individuals is met;
- for the purposes of the increase, the following is considered to be the “first child” of the requesting parent: the child, whether a minor or an adult, resident in Italy, and living with the requesting parent;
- otherwise, minors in pre-adoptive foster care and those in temporary foster care are not considered as “first children” nor as “children after the first”, since the increase was foreseen for the child after the first, therefore on the basis of “filiation” relationships;
- in case of twin birth occurring on the same day in 2021:
- if it is a first event (ie if the requesting parent has not previously had children, not even adoptive ones), the increase must be recognized for each child born after the first in chronological order (eg birth of triplets in 2021, if the applicant has no other children, the increase applies to the second and third born in chronological order);
- if it is not a first event (ie if the requesting parent has previously had children, including adoptive ones) the increase applies to all twins;
- In the case of multiple adoptions, i.e., adoptions of minors that occurred on the same day in 2021, if this is a first adoption (ie, if the applicant has no previous children, including adoptive children), the increase is granted to each adopted child born after the first (eg, adoption of three minors on May 7, 2021; if the applicant has no other children, the increase applies only to the second and third born in chronological order). In the case of multiple adoptions of twins, the increase is granted for all adopted twins except one, at the applicant’s discretion (eg, adoption of triplets on May 7, 2021; if the applicant has no other children, the increase applies only to two of the adopted triplets, at the applicant’s discretion);
- In the case of multiple adoptions occurring on the same day in 2021, unless this is the first time (ie, if the applicant has previously had children, including adoptive children), the increase must be granted for each adopted child, even in the case of twin adoptions (eg, adoption of three minors on May 7, 2021; if the applicant has other children, the increase applies to all three adopted minors).
The bonus is valid for three years , but the application for it must be submitted only once for the first year; for the second and third, it will be sufficient to simply renew the ISEE certification according to the established procedures and rules.
The bonus can also be revoked from a family when they no longer meet the eligibility requirements. This occurs in the following cases:
- The adoption is revoked by the parents
- The exercise of parental responsibility lapses
- The child is entrusted to third parties for various reasons
- Custody to the other parent who did not submit the application
- Death of the son
In either of these cases, parents must notify INPS of the occurrence of the conditions that preclude access to the bonus. If this is not done, families will be forced to repay the sums equal to the period in which the money was received.
A final recommendation concerns the sums spent on the baby bonus that exceeds the budgeted amount; if this occurs, and if INPS spends more on the baby bonus than budgeted for three consecutive months, the application will no longer be accepted until the annual amount of the benefit and the new ISEE values are determined.
