Special assistance

• You live in Almere
• You are 18 years or older
• You have a low income
• Your savings and expensive goods do not go above the capital limit (vermogensgrens; in Dutch)
• The costs are unexpected, special and necessary. Regular costs for groceries or insurance do not apply
• You cannot pay the costs through another scheme
• You incurred the costs in the Netherlands
• You can apply for costs before or after you have incurred the costs. If you have already incurred the costs, then you must apply for special assistance within a maximum of 2 months. An exception is special assistance for housing costs (housing allowance; woonkostentoeslag). In that case, the costs may have been incurred in the past 6 months
• Special assistance is possible for costs that you have to pay once, or for monthly payments. We will pay you for a maximum of 12 months in the case of monthly costs. After these 12 months, you will have to apply again

It could be the case that more conditions can apply. This depends on what kind of costs you have incurred. We will also have a look at your situation. If you have a wijkcoach (neighbourhood coach), then we can contact them for more information about your situation. Please mention in the application if you have a wijkcoach.

• If you apply for special assistance, we will take a look at your income and your own money or savings. The higher the amount, the less special assistance you can apply for
• It could also be the case that you could take a loan at a bank. Or that other organisations can pay, such as your health insurance company
• Sometimes you will have to pay a part of the costs yourself

There are multiple schemes available to get money, sometimes more than you think. Calculate in just a few steps what amounts you may be entitled to. For more information, visit berekenuwrecht.nibud.nl (in Dutch).

When applying for special assistance, it is important that you provide proof, such as bills that you have received. Which proof we may need from you depends entirely on what you apply for. With every type of cost, beneath the heading apply, you can find information on exactly what data you have to send.

• Medical costs
• Costs for administration (an administrator manages your money)
• Costs for legal aid
• Costs for youth from ages 18 to 20
• Purchase of a computer/laptop
• Travel costs for children until 18-years-old
• Extra costs due to illness or old age
• Costs of durable goods for the house (furniture, washing machines)
• Costs for baby-related expenses
• Costs from moving out
• Costs for housing (housing allowance; woonkostentoeslag)
• Costs for identification documents or residence permits
• Costs for burial and cremation
• Travel costs
• Other costs

You will need a DigiD when you apply. If you have a partner, then your partner will also have to log-in to DigiD when applying.

Read how you can apply for DigiD. You will need an email address for DigiD.

You cannot apply for special assistance without a DigiD. You can make a report. A report can be made with the button below. By using this button, you will use the online report form. With this form you can indicate that intended to apply for special assistance and that you applied for a DigiD account today. The municipality will then register this date as the report date. As soon as you have a DigiD account, you can then finish your application.

If you are under guardianship, then your guardian can send your application for special assistance in writing for you. The guardian can contact the municipality by calling 14 036 and ask for a written application.

After your application, make sure to always check if you received an email from us. Don't forget to look into your spam folder. This is important, because if you have not received an email, then your application did not go through. This means that we cannot evaluate your application. If this happens to you, make sure to contact us as soon as possible by calling 14 036.

You will receive a decision from the municipality within 8 weeks of your application. You will receive a letter at your address with the decision. It might be possible that we will need additional information from you. We will contact you if this is the case.

The municipality decides whether or not you will receive special assistance. You can make an objection if you disagree with the decision. Make sure to do so within 6 weeks after you received the decision on your application.

Do you have any further questions? Then please call us during workdays on 14 036 between 8.30 and 17.00 o'clock.