500+ in Poland and barnetrygd in Norway. Can you receive both?

The Polish “Rodzina 500 plus” programme and the Norwegian “barnetrygd” benefit are so-called comparable benefits. This means that we should not receive both forms of support at the same time. After the changes in June 2022, a lot has changed in relation to child benefits. What do the rules currently look like for these benefits?

Poland as the country with priority

  Regardless of the mother’s employment situation, if she is staying in Poland, Poland has priority in making the payment. This means that:

• if both parents work in Norway, the Norwegian barnetrygd benefit is payable in full, and the Polish 500+ is not payable at all.
• if one parent works in Norway, and the other stays with the child in Poland and does not work, Poland has priority in making the payment; however, the other parent working in Norway is entitled to receive the full barnetrygd in Norway.
• if one parent works in Norway, and the other stays with the child in Poland and works, Poland has priority in making the payment, and the other parent is entitled to a top-up if barnetrygd is higher than 500+ in Poland (as explained below).

So the rules are quite complicated. They show that if only one parent stays and works in Norway, then regardless of international rules, Poland will still pay 500+ to anyone who meets the conditions for this benefit. At the same time, Norway applies EU rules, so when one parent works in Norway and the other stays in Poland without working, in theory both benefits are due. However, we encounter different interpretations of the same situations depending on the geographical region of Poland.

Can you receive 500+ and barnetrygd at the same time?

Although in theory in one of the situations we are entitled to both 500+ and barnetrygd, we must remember that this is only theory. In practice, one of the countries often demands repayment of the amount paid for a given period, which can come as a surprise and may cause financial complications for us.

Therefore, if we decide to receive both benefits in their full amounts, remember that we do so at our own risk and at any time Poland or Norway may demand repayment!

If, on the other hand, we are concerned about the consequences described above, we should stop receiving one of the benefits. To do this, we should contact the NAV office or ZUS, depending on which benefit we want to give up (and which should not be payable to us), and apply to stop the benefit payment.

Top-up of barnetrygd from Norway

 For children over 6 years of age, the amounts of barnetrygd and 500+ are similar. However, for children up to 6 years of age, the barnetrygd amount for 2023 is higher - exactly 1676 nok, i.e. approx. 660 zł. We can therefore apply to NAV for a top-up to this amount. We will then receive 500+ from Poland and approx. 160 zł top-up from Norway.

NOTE: We must also meet the conditions for receiving barnetrygd itself, which you can find here. If you would like our help in obtaining a top-up to barnetrygd or applying for the full benefit itself, please contact us: +47 21 38 38 21 Mon.-Fri. 9:00-21:00.