At today’s session in Sarajevo, the Government of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, on the proposal of the Federal Ministry of Labor and Social Policy, adopted the Decree on the payment of financial assistance to mothers in childbirth for a newborn child in the FBiH. This regulation regulates the procedure for paying financial assistance to mothers for a newborn child, the beneficiaries and the conditions under which the assistance is provided, the procedure for approving the assistance, as well as other issues of importance for the approval of financial assistance for maternity care for a newborn child in the Federation.
Let us remind you that this is a one-time benefit for a newborn child in the amount of 1,000 KM per child. The federal government directed this pronatal policy model to ensure the long-term socio-economic empowerment of families with children, and therefore, as explained by the relevant ministry, to increase the chances of mitigating the consequences of negative demographic trends. The estimated number of beneficiaries is 16,000, and the amount of 16 million KM for the payment of aid for a newborn child is provided in the Budget of the FBiH for 2024, in the position of Current transfer to individuals – One-time financial aid for a newborn child.
Under the conditions established by today’s decree, this financial assistance can be obtained by a woman in labor who gave birth to an offspring in the period from January 1 to December 31 in the calendar year in which payment is made from the Federation budget for that year on the basis of this decree. It is specified that financial assistance for a newborn child can be obtained by the mother in the case of a stillborn child or if the child dies during the period during which requests for financial assistance are submitted based on this regulation. In the event of the death of the child’s mother or the temporary inability of the mother to take care of the child due to illness or serving a prison sentence, or in the event that the mother has been deprived of her parental rights, this assistance can be provided by the father of the child born in the mentioned period.
As stated in the Regulation, this assistance cannot be obtained by the parents of a child whose parental rights have been taken away or a child who, by the decision of the competent center for social work or the municipal social welfare service, has been placed in a foster family or social welfare institution during the period during which applications for approval of financial assistance based on this regulation. In this regard, the Federal Ministry of Labor and Social Policy will verify the facts through the official records of competent centers and municipal services. If it is established that during the period during which requests for financial assistance are submitted based on this regulation, the parents’ parental rights have been taken away or that the child has been placed in a foster family or social welfare institution, the parent of the child to whom financial assistance has been paid for a newborn child is obliged to return the funds.
In the conditions for the approval of financial aid for a newborn child, it is pointed out that the mother must be a citizen of BiH and FBiH with a registered residence in the territory of the Federation for at least nine months before the day of the child’s birth. The child must be born in Bosnia and Herzegovina in the period from January 1 to December 31 in the calendar year in which payment is made from the federal budget for that year based on this regulation. If the child’s father is a citizen of BiH and FBiH with a registered residence on the territory of the Federation for at least nine months before the day of the child’s birth, then the mother who is not a citizen of BiH can be granted this assistance. Also, the mother of a child who was not born in Bosnia and Herzegovina can be granted this assistance if she was in another country at the time of childbirth due to health reasons.
The decree established that the request for the approval of aid is submitted through an electronic application that will be available on the official website of the Federal Ministry of Labor and Social Policy. After the completion of the registration procedure and submission of the application for financial aid through the electronic application, the Ministry will check the entered data through the official database of the Agency for Identification Documents, Records and Data Exchange of BiH (IDDEEA).
The period for submitting a request for approval of financial assistance for a newborn child, including its possible supplement, runs from January 1 of the calendar year in which the Federation budget for that year is paid on the basis of this regulation until January 15 of the following calendar year, announced of the Government of FBiH from the Public Relations Office.
Source: akta.ba
