The payment of the inclusive allowance will require more than one billion euros, which is double the amount planned in the budget. This is derived from data obtained from the Croatian Institute for Social Work, according to which approximately 289,000 applications for the inclusive allowance (both ex officio and new applications) have been submitted so far, averaging 367 euros.
According to the latest data, the Croatian Institute for Social Work has ex officio initiated procedures to determine the fulfillment of conditions for the right to the inclusive allowance for 147,752 previous recipients of consolidated benefits, and an additional 141,005 new applications have been submitted by individuals who have not previously accessed rights in the system based on health status. These numbers could further increase as the number of applications for the inclusive allowance is constantly rising. Just 10 days ago, the number of new applications was 135,800.
So far, a total of 192,047 cases have been resolved, of which 172,797 were positive, indicating that 90 percent of the received applications have been approved. If we apply this percentage to all applications, that is, 289,000, and assuming no new applications arrive, ultimately around 260,000 people could receive the inclusive allowance in Croatia, which is far more than the government estimated when it announced the inclusive allowance. At that time, the figure of 150,000 people was mentioned.
When announcing the Law on the Inclusive Allowance, Marin Piletić, the Minister of Labor, Pension System, Family and Social Policy, stated that for the four benefits that were replaced by the inclusive allowance, a cumulative amount of 265 million euros was previously allocated annually, while the new inclusive allowance would require 506 million euros, almost double the previous amount. However, it seems that in relation to those old benefits, the amount will quadruple.
The amount of the inclusive allowance for each individual recipient depends on the type and degree of disability, and is recognized at one of five levels of support. The amount of the inclusive allowance for the first level of support is 720 euros per month, for the second level of support 480 euros per month, for the third level of support 432 euros per month, for the fourth level of support 162 euros per month, and for the fifth level of support 138 euros per month. Regarding the amounts of the inclusive allowance by levels of support, so far, 19,839 recipients have received the first level of support, 22,212 recipients receive the second level, 65,333 recipients have received the third level, 53,635 recipients the fourth level, and 11,778 recipients the fifth level – as stated by the Croatian Institute for Social Work.
According to the stated figures, the average inclusive allowance is 367 euros, and for the currently approved recipients of the inclusive allowance, 760 million euros is needed annually. If the inclusive allowance is ultimately approved for 260,000 people, which is very likely according to the current statistics and submitted applications, approximately 1.15 billion euros will need to be allocated from the budget annually for this purpose. On the other hand, for the payment of the inclusive allowance in 2025, 562.8 million euros is projected, which is half of what is needed.
An interesting detail from the Law is that the inclusive allowance does not differentiate between Croatian citizens and foreigners, as we recently wrote, so the right to the inclusive allowance can be granted not only to Croatian citizens residing in Croatia but also to third-country nationals with permanent residence or long-term residence or approved temporary residence in the Republic of Croatia, stateless persons with temporary or permanent residence or long-term residence in the Republic of Croatia, and citizens of a member state of the European Economic Area who have registered temporary or permanent residence in the Republic of Croatia.