House of Representatives of the FBiH Parliament Adopts Law on Amendments to the Law on Support for Families with Children

(Patria) - At yesterday's regular session of the House of Representatives of the Parliament of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, three laws from the field of labor and social policy were adopted, of which the Law on Amendments and Additions to the Law on Material Support for Families with Children was adopted in a shortened procedure, and its final adoption still requires a debate in the House of Peoples of the FBiH Parliament. 

Upon its entry into force, the mandatory annual review of decisions for the federal child allowance will be abolished, which will make it easier for parents as they will no longer be obliged to collect documentation every year, and at the same time, the scope of administrative obligations in social work centers will be reduced, and the entire procedure for approving rights will be accelerated. 

Children with malignant diseases will be included in the right without income threshold calculation, which contributes to strengthening family functionality and gives families, in addition to symbolic, material support, a sense that the state cares about them. 

In addition, income from personal disability benefits will be excluded from the family income threshold, which will allow all those who receive income from personal disability benefits to exercise their right, which was previously impossible because the disability benefit was included in the income threshold and affected its amount. 

A novelty is also the acceptance of amendments to this Law, which includes children with disabilities, beneficiaries of first and second-person care and assistance, also regardless of the income threshold, i.e., total family income. 

During the debate, the exclusion of alimony from the total family income threshold was also discussed, to which the Minister of Labor and Social Policy Adnan Delić responded that social work services and centers already have instructions on how to act in cases of child allowance applications when alimony is involved but is not operational and not paid to the child. 

In this regard, Minister Delić said, when approving the right to child allowance, centers do not calculate the alimony amount in the total family income if the alimony is not paid.