Orphan's allowance
Related forms (7)
LEGISLATION
Who is entitled to orphan's allowance?
A child whose parent has died as an old age pensioner or has completed the service period required for pension entitlement before death is entitled to an orphan's allowance.
Orphan's allowance may also be entitled for children of a married couple or cohabiting couple who are jointly brought up in the same household. An orphan's allowance is payable to an adopted child by right of the biological parent only if the child is adopted by the spouse of the biological parent.
Orphan's allowance is also payable to a brother or sister and a grandchild if the deceased supported them in their own household and the child has no dependent relative who is able and obliged to care them.
What is the age limit for orphan's allowance?
Orphan's allowance is payable from the date of death of the deceased insured person until the child reaches the age of 16.
If the child is in education at a school, a vocational training establishment or an institution of higher education as a full-time, the orphan's allowance is payable for the duration of the education, but not beyond the age of 25.
If the person entitled to an orphan’s allowance becomes a person with changed working capacity, the orphan's allowance shall be paid for as long as the person's state of health does not exceed 50%, regardless of their age.
The entitlement to orphan's allowance does not cease if the child is subsequently adopted or the surviving parent remarries.
Orphan’s allowance are also payable for school education to a child who
- because of sickness, physical or mental disability, pregnancy, childbirth or care of a child under three years of age, is pursuing their education as a pupil on an individual work or study programme,
- is under the age of 25 and is in adult education, provided that the adult education is not distance education and that the average number of hours of training per week is seven hours.
How to prove the continuation of studies?
When applying for an orphan's allowance, in the case of children over 16 years of age, it is recommended to enclose a certificate of education certified by the educational institution in order to facilitate the assessment of the claim, which can be found in the downloadable material.
In the case of a benefit already paid to an orphan studying in Hungary, if the pension payment body is unable to obtain the details of the pupil status, student status or adult education status ex officio, it shall ask the orphan beneficiary to provide proof of studies.
An orphan studying abroad must provide proof of attendance by means of a certificate issued by the educational institution, annually in the case of secondary education and every six months in the case of higher education, within one month of the start of the studies. A bilingual form for this purpose is available for download.
Any changes to the entitlement to orphan's allowance which affect the continuation of studies must be confirmed within 15 days by a certificate issued by the educational institution.
How much is the orphan's allowance?
The orphan's allowance is equal to 30% of the old age pension which the deceased was receiving or would have received at the time of death.
An orphan's allowance of 60% is payable to a child whose both parents are deceased or whose surviving parent is a person with changed working capacity.
If the child is entitled to an orphan's allowance for both parents, the orphan's allowance shall be paid at the amount which is more favourable to the child.
The minimum amount of orphan's allowance is currently HUF 50,000 per month.
How to apply for orphan's allowance?
The application for orphan's allowance can be submitted electronically on the www.magyarorszag.hu website under Pensions > Claim for benefits menu point or by post or in person, using the form available for downloading from the documents provided for this purpose.
The claim must be submitted to the government office acting as the competent pension insurance administration body in the place of residence or, if the deceased was a pensioner, to the Pension Payment Directorate.
The claim may also be lodged at a government office.
What to attach to the application?
In the case of orphans over 16 years of age, a certificate of education must be enclosed.
In the case of an orphan with a changed working capacity, a statement of health issued by a rehabilitation expert authority. If this is not available, the following medical documents must be attached:
- a referral for an opinion on changes in working capacity, containing summary information on the state of health and medical treatment,
- medical documents which are not available for the medical expert body in the National eHealth Infrastructure (hereinafter EESZT).
The medical documents can be checked at on the eeszt.gov.hu website after electronic identification, the access of the documents can be modified at “Önrendelkezés”/”Self-determination” menu point.
If the medical documents required for the examination are not available, the general practitioner should be consulted in order to perform any necessary examinations, obtain any previous results in their possession or obtain a referral to a medical expert.
If the applicant has been placed under care or guardianship or custodianship, the decision of the guardianship authority must also be attached.
How to apply for a renewal of orphan's allowance?
If the entitlement to orphan's allowance has ceased, but the orphan is continuing their studies, orphan's allowance can be claimed again by filling in the form provided for this purpose, which can be found in the documents available for download.
What to do if there is a change in the orphan's details or circumstances?
Any information, facts or circumstances affecting the entitlement to orphan's allowance or the payment of it must be reported to the Pension Payment Directorate. You can find more information on this under the heading Notification obligation.
If the deceased was not in receipt of a benefit:
At the government office of the applicant's place of residence.
If the deceased was in receipt of a benefit:
At the customer service of the Pension Payment Directorate (1139 Budapest Váci road 73.).
If the deceased was not in receipt of a benefit:
The envelope must be marked with name of the government office of the applicant's place of residence.
The uniform postal address is:
Budapest
1916
If the deceased was in receipt of a benefit:
Hungarian State Treasury Pension Payment Directorate
Budapest
1820