Who Is Eligible for Home Caregiver Allowance?
As living standards improve in many parts of the world, including our country, average life expectancy has increased. At the same time, factors such as environmental pollution, deteriorating food quality, rising stress and depression, and the fast pace of life have led to an increase in the number of people who require care—not only elderly individuals but also people of all ages with disabilities. For this reason, authorities have introduced measures to support those who need care. These regulations affect a significant portion of the population. In our country, eligibility for a home caregiver allowance is determined by three main conditions.
Conditions for Receiving a Home Care Allowance
First, the disability report must be issued by a fully equipped hospital, the disability rate must be at least 50%, and the report must explicitly state that the person is severely disabled. A severely disabled person is defined as someone whom the medical board determines cannot carry out daily life activities without assistance from others.
This requirement differs for young children. Because dependence on others is natural for small children, whether they require ongoing care becomes clearer as they grow. Consequently, health board reports for children are typically issued for one or two years rather than indefinitely, and the “severe disability” box is often not checked.
Second, the person with a disability must have difficulty independently performing basic daily activities—such as eating, drinking, toileting, and bathing—or be unable to perform these tasks at all, and therefore continuously need assistance and care from others to sustain their life. Third, the household income of the person living with a severely disabled individual is also taken into account when determining eligibility for the home care allowance. The household’s total income divided by the number of household members must not exceed two-thirds of the monthly net minimum wage. In other words, when the total household income is divided by the number of people living in the household, that per-person income must not exceed the threshold. As of February 2017, this limit was 847 Turkish Lira per person.
Where to Apply for the Home Care Allowance?
If the conditions above are met, the person with the disability—or their legal representative—should apply to the Provincial or District Directorate of Family and Social Policies where the disabled person resides. The provincial directorate will notify applicants within thirty days whether they are eligible to receive the home care allowance. For 2017, the home care allowance was paid at a rate of 960 Turkish Lira per month.