Your child already has a third cold during the autumn and you feel that it should really get better and not pass? An octogenarian mom has become seriously ill and no longer self-sufficient? Do you qualify for government assistance if you are caring for a loved one? Elderly home care or nursing home care may be the ideal solution for you in these situations. We’ve put together an overview of what you can claim for in home nursing care and under what conditions.
Need to find out exactly what you are entitled to? Take advantage of our socio-legal advice. You can describe your situation online and a lawyer will suggest a course of action.
If you have a sick family member and you want to provide care for him or her, you should, in the care of the family member, “go to the paragraph”, so to speak, and thus qualify for nursing benefits, in particular, you should be a classic employee with an employment contract. Employees who are covered by sickness insurance are entitled to sick pay. This does not only apply to a classic employment contract, but can also apply to employees working on a fixed-term or permanent contract if their income gives rise to sickness insurance. On the other hand, self-employed workers are not entitled to sick pay unless they pay voluntary sickness insurance to the extent provided for by law. This is a general rule, but it can be changed in exceptional situations, such as the covid pandemic.
Attendance allowance is a sickness insurance benefit paid by the local District Social Security Office. The law sets out the conditions that must be met for it to be paid. The basic ones are the employee’s participation in sickness insurance and the sick person’s stay at home. Should the patient’s condition necessitate a stay in hospital, the nursing allowance would cease to be paid.
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The law allows you to care for a sick family member with whom you live in the household if their condition is so serious that they require the care of someone else. For example, you may be able to get nursing care for a parent or spouse. This form of home care is very common, especially when caring for the elderly at home.
However, the shared household condition does not apply to immediate relatives and selected people listed in the law, such as parents, children, siblings, a spouse or registered partner
The severity of the medical condition, as well as the condition of occupying the same household, does not have to be examined in any way and be fulfilled for children under 10 years of age. For such young children, it is always the case that any illness they may have requires treatment by another person.
Attendance allowance for healthy children may sound a bit like a contradiction in terms, but the law does indeed remember them too. In fact, you may be entitled to nursing allowance even in some cases where the child does not need direct treatment but undoubtedly needs care, for example because he or she cannot attend school. We have explored this option really thoroughly, including various modifications and updates from the government during the epidemic of covid.
So these cases are about caring for a healthy child under the age of 10, for the reason that:
If you are unable to work for longer and are away from the workplace for more than a few days, you can take turns with the other parent or another person covered by the legal requirements during the care. In fact, two people can be provided with care during the course of one case of care needs.
This statutory provision thus facilitates the care of a sick child, for example for parents who use alternate care.
You will receive nursing allowance for the first nine calendar days, provided that the need for nursing continues. This can be up to 16 days for employees who are single parents caring for a child under the age of 16 who has not completed compulsory schooling.
The amount of the nursing allowance is based on your wages and is determined as 60% of the reduced daily assessment base per calendar day. This is, in simple terms, the average daily earnings for the relevant period – usually the 12 calendar months preceding the month in which the entitlement to sick pay arose. Simply add up the income for that period and divide it by the number of calendar days. This gives the daily assessment base. Three so-called reduction thresholds can still be applied to it, which reduce this amount and make it the so-called reduced daily assessment base.
The easiest way to find out the approximate amount of sick pay is to use one of the online calculators.
We have worked out the procedure for applying for sick pay in a separate article.
In addition to short-term care, there is also long-term care. This can help when a loved one’s medical condition after a hospital admission requires in-home, full-time care for at least 30 calendar days. For people with a terminal condition who are receiving palliative care, no prior hospitalization is required. Long-term care benefits may be taken for a maximum of 90 calendar days and amount to 60 % of the reduced daily assessment base.
However, the health of elderly parents or grandparents may require even longer care. Home care for the elderly is often preferred to institutionalisation, which allows the elderly to maintain familiar surroundings and contact with loved ones. If professional health care is needed, it can be provided through home nursing care covered by health insurance.
If your personal situation allows, then home care for the elderly is ideal. This option is, of course, advantageous for the state, but it is primarily appreciated by the seniors themselves. They can remain in familiar surroundings, surrounded by loved ones, and yet not have to worry about medical neglect.
Home care services may be recommended by the attending physician after an examination . Of course, this must not be a medical condition that requires hospitalisation. Based on the examination, the doctor will recommend the number of visits to the patient and the goal of care, which is then developed in the form of a care plan. In the case of a more serious condition, a care allowance is available, which is often used to cover the costs of caring for a loved one.
If you are caring for a loved one over the age of one who is dependent on the help of another person because of a long-term health condition, a care allowance (formerly known as a helplessness allowance) can make things easier. However, the care allowance is not paid to the person caring for the person, but directly to the person in need, who decides whether to pay relatives, a carer or social services for help. Typically, this institution is used to care for parents who are unable to do so.
We’ve covered how to claim Attendance Allowance in a separate article.
The amount of the allowance is determined according to the degree of dependence and whether or not a residential social service is used at the same time. The amount of the care allowance depends on the degree of dependence of the person on the assistance of another person and on his or her age. The amounts change over time and are regularly indexed. In 2026, the care allowance for persons over 18 years of age is CZK 1 300 in the first stage, CZK 5 400 in the second stage, CZK 14 800 in the third stage and CZK 23 000 in the fourth stage when using residential social services, otherwise CZK 27 000. For persons under 18 years of age, the amounts are CZK 4 900, CZK 8 200, CZK 16 100 and again CZK 23 000 in the fourth stage when using residential services, otherwise CZK 27 000.
Although this allowance is most often used for home care for the elderly, it can of course be used for care for anyone who needs it. An application for the care allowance must be completed and submitted to the relevant branch of the Labour Office, according to the place of residence of the applicant. If the person concerned is unable to complete the application himself, an agent will complete the application.
The biggest problem with the care allowance is that , although the family actually provides care on a daily basis, they are unable to describe the exact extent of the assistance in the application or in the social investigation. The outcome of the proceedings and the degree of dependence awarded often depend on this. If you are not sure how to prepare your application, how to prove your health or how to deal with a refusal or low benefit, you can use our socio-legal advice service. We will assess the situation, go through the supporting documents and suggest the next course of action to the authority.
Caring for a loved one is a challenging but very important activity that has both legal and financial support options. Whether it is short-term care for a family member or long-term home care for the elderly, the state offers a number of tools to make this care easier for you. Be sure to take advantage of available benefits or services that can make it much easier for you.
Ms. Navratilova contacted us when her father needed daily assistance with hygiene, dressing, meal preparation and getting around the home after suffering a stroke. The family had been caring for him at home, but in the care allowance proceedings he had been awarded a lower level of dependency than the actual condition suggested was appropriate for his needs.
We first reviewed with the client the medical reports, descriptions of her daily routine and specific tasks that her father could no longer manage without assistance. We then prepared supplemental briefing and legal arguments for the appeal. It was important not to describe the situation in general terms, but to show exactly which basic living needs the father relied on another person for.
After the supplementary documentation, the decision was reversed and the allowance was increased. In cases like this, we most often help our clients to ensure that their actual care is correctly captured in the proceedings and that the authority has specific, documented information.
Attendance allowance is an essential tool to help employees bridge short-term absences from work. For more serious conditions, long-term care benefits are an option, which allow for full-time home care for up to 90 days.
In addition to sickness insurance benefits, a care allowance can also help. This is payable directly to the person who is dependent on the help of another person because of a long-term adverse health condition.
In practice, we recommend that you do not just look at the entitlement to the benefit itself, but also at the evidence: medical reports, descriptions of daily care, communication with the authorities and the correct completion of the application. It is often inaccurate or overly general descriptions of the situation that lead to the family not receiving support to the extent that is appropriate to the actual condition.
Find out what to do if you disagree with your care allowance.
Yes, but only if the agreement entitles you to sickness insurance. The agreement itself is not automatically sufficient.
Nursing care is normally provided for a maximum of 9 calendar days, or up to 16 days for single parents caring for a child who has not completed compulsory schooling. Two beneficiaries, for example both parents, can take turns during the same period of care. However, the alternation must be reported correctly, otherwise there is a risk of complications in the payment of the benefit.
Yes. You can get nursing care for a child who is not sick if you have to look after them personally, for example because a school or nursery closes, a child is quarantined or a carer falls ill. It is not the child’s medical condition, but an obstacle to the child’s normal care.
Attendance allowance is a short-term sickness insurance benefit for employees temporarily caring for a sick family member or child.
Attendance allowance, on the other hand, is a long-term benefit for people who are dependent on the help of another person because of an adverse health condition. This allowance is paid directly to the person in need of care, who decides whether to use it to pay for family, outreach or residential care.
Yes. Long-term care for an elderly person can be covered by a care allowance or home nursing care paid for by the health insurance, if indicated by a doctor. The combination of these forms of support can make family care much easier, but the conditions and requirements vary according to the individual situation. In practice, individual legal or social counselling can often help.
The self-employed person is not entitled to regular sick pay as a standard. Exceptions may occur only if there is a special statutory regulation.
Usually 9 calendar days. For a single parent caring for a child under 16 who has not completed compulsory schooling, up to 16 days.
Check the reasons for the decision, the medical evidence and the description of coping with the basic needs of life. If the decision does not correspond to the facts, you can appeal.
Have you applied for sickness, maternity, parental allowance or other benefit and instead of the expected support, you received a rejection? Or were you awarded a benefit in a lower amount than is appropriate for your situation?
Ondřej is the attorney who came up with the idea of providing legal services online. He's been earning his living through legal services for more than 10 years. He especially likes to help clients who may have given up hope in solving their legal issues at work, for example with real estate transfers or copyright licenses.
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