Families who have not yet applied for the one-time contribution of 5,000 crowns per child, initiated by the government last year in response to rising prices, have only three weeks left to do so. The deadline for applications is the end of June, with July 1 being the final date to submit the application.

The importance of the application date in determining eligibility has been emphasized by Kateřina Beránková, spokesperson for the Labor Office. While it is still possible to supplement or modify the application after the deadline, the payout will be delayed by approximately one month.

As of the end of May, nearly 890,000 one-time contributions, totaling seven billion crowns, had been paid out to over 1.4 million children. However, the government estimated that families with over 1.56 million children could potentially receive this benefit, indicating that tens of thousands of families with over 100,000 children may still be eligible but have not yet applied.

The one-time contribution is available for children born between August 2, 2004, and December 31 of the previous year, provided they were under the age of eighteen on August 2. Families with a gross annual income of up to one million crowns (approximately 83,333 crowns per month) are eligible. The child must reside in the household, and the combined incomes of the parents or partners responsible for the child are considered, excluding the incomes of grandparents or older siblings who may also reside in the same household.

Parents, adoptive parents, and foster parents can apply for the benefit. In cases of shared custody, an agreement must be reached on who will apply for the benefit on behalf of the child.

Applications can be submitted either online or by post. The online application is available at jenda.mpsv.cz, and in-person submissions can be made at various locations, such as Czech Point sites, regional offices of the Labor Office, municipal or city offices, and post offices displaying the Czech Point logo. Czech Point employees can enter the application directly into the system, eliminating the need for physical forms.

To apply online, applicants must have one of the recognized forms of electronic identity, such as the mobile key of eGovernment or access data for electronic banking. The government will independently verify income information, and applicants must confirm the sworn declaration of their income amount. Contact details, residence information, and details about the children and their partner (if applicable) residing in the same household must also be provided.

The one-time contribution of 5,000 crowns per child was introduced by the government to alleviate the impact of rising energy, food, and service prices. However, criticism has been directed at the measure for being a flat and non-systemic approach, not only from the opposition but from various quarters as well.

Article by Prague Forum