News item | 06-04-2023 | 16:58
Municipalities are busy implementing the integration system that has been in operation since 1 January 2022. Some parts of the law are proving difficult to implement in practice. One of those matters is the support of beneficiaries of social security benefits in financial matters. The Ministry of Social Affairs and Employment has taken these signals to heart. Municipalities will continue to be obliged to unburden themselves, but will be given more scope to apply customized solutions in this regard. Minister Karien van Gennip writes this to the House of Representatives.
Status holders are refugees with a temporary residence permit. According to the Civic Integration Act 2021 (Wi2021), municipalities are required to ‘financially unburden’ status holders who are subject to integration requirements in the first six months of receiving social assistance benefits. This means that municipalities pay rent, health insurance and gas, water and light for people integrating from the social assistance benefit. The idea behind this is that newcomers can then fully focus on their integration. Municipalities also have the task of guiding people integrating towards financial self-sufficiency.
Several municipalities have indicated that financial relief is sometimes difficult to implement. For part of the target group it is counterproductive, because they are already financially skilled. They actually experience more unrest when the municipality pays their fixed costs. For some of the beneficiaries, guidance in financial self-sufficiency also appears to be a better tool. Discussions with municipalities have shown that the current legislation offers too little scope for customisation.
Support
These are important signals and that is why, in anticipation of a revision of the law, municipalities will be given more scope to set up financial support. Municipalities are no longer obliged to pay the fixed costs of status holders entitled to social assistance. However, the legal obligation to meet the goal of financial unburdening remains, namely to prevent uncertainty about the financial position from distracting from integration activities.
Municipalities can then adjust the support to the individual situation. Making payments from the benefit is the standard. If the broad intake shows that the status holder is already more self-reliant, other forms of support can be used to check whether someone can meet the financial obligations. Providing guidance towards more self-reliance remains important, so that problems do not arise after the period of financial relief. Municipalities are supported in shaping this in collaboration with the VNG and Divosa.
The minister hopes to inform the House in the autumn about amendments to the legislation and regulations regarding financial relief.