Rights and obligations

You are entitled to financial assistance from the municipality and to a supplement to your income up to the social assistance standard that applies to you. In addition, you are also entitled to assistance in finding a job. You can expect the following from us:

• The municipality treats you correctly.
• You will receive your benefits on time.
• The municipality protects your data.
• You know why the municipality has made a certain decision.
• You can object.
• You may travel abroad for a maximum of 28 days per calendar year.
• You can apply for a temporary exemption from work obligations.

Obligation to provide information
From the moment you apply for benefits, you have a duty to provide information. This means you must provide us with all the information relevant to your eligibility for assistance. If there's a change in your situation, please report it immediately. For example:

• You start working (part-time) and receive income.
• You receive an inheritance or win a lottery prize.
• You want to buy a car or motorcycle.
• You want to study.
• You want to do volunteer work.
• You are moving.
• Your living situation changes (living together, divorce/separation, or children leaving home or moving back home).
• You want to go on vacation.
• You receive more than €1,200 per year in donations.
• Your assets exceed the asset limit.

Report changes using the change form. Read more about reporting changes >, or contact your legality consultant.

Important
If you fail to report changes (on time), and you receive too much benefit as a result, you must repay it. In the case of intentional or deliberate misuse, you may receive a warning or a fine. You may also receive a fine or a warning if there is deliberate misuse. The fine can be as high as the amount you received too much.

Duty to cooperate
You are expected to cooperate if the municipality requests it. This means, for example:

• Participating in a home visit.
• Cooperate with an investigation or check to determine whether you are still entitled to benefits.

If you do not do this, the municipality can reduce your benefits.

Work obligation
If you receive benefits, you must also look for work, if it suits your situation. This is called the work obligation. These are the rules:

• You accept (suitable) work and try to keep it. Suitable work means work that suits you. We take your health, education, wishes, and experience into account.
• You register with a temporary employment agency.
• Moving? Then you should first look for work in the municipality where you'll be living.
• You are willing to travel up to 3 hours per day if necessary to get work.
• Is there no work within a three-hour drive? Then you're willing to relocate for work.
• You ensure that you have and retain the necessary knowledge and skills.
• You contribute to the assistance you receive from the municipality in finding work.
• You ensure that your clothing, personal care and behaviour do not hinder you from getting and finding work.

If you don't follow these rules, we may reduce your benefits.
If you can't help it, we're not allowed to do that. We always take your personal situation into account.

Single parent

You can get an exemption from the obligation to work if you are a single parent with full care for 1 or more children up to the age of 5. You must submit a request for this to your contact person at Work & Income. If you are exempted from the obligation to work, you will in any case be required to attend training. You are then obliged to participate in training offered by the municipality.

Urgent reason

The municipality can also temporarily release you from the labor obligations in full or in part. This means that you do not have to meet any obligations. There must be compelling reasons for this. For example, if you care for young children. Are you a single parent with a child up to 12 years old? In that case, the obligation to accept a job only applies if childcare is available.

If you are fully incapacitated for work for a long period of time, there is no obligation to work.

This means that your benefit is temporarily blocked. It has not been discontinued, but as long as this blockage is in place, your benefit will not be paid. You can often do something yourself to remove the blockage, for example by supplying us with missing data/evidence. Once you have done this, the blockage can usually be lifted and your benefit will be paid again. Make sure you do this on time. If you wait too long, your benefit may be stopped.

You can be fined if you fail to comply with the information obligation. The obligation to provide information means that you must pass on everything that may affect (the amount of) your benefit to Werk & Inkomen. You do this with the change form. If you no longer have this available, please contact your legality consultant. Do you not submit the form (on time)? Then you can get a fine or warning. The fine officer will decide whether you will be fined. Before this decision is made, you always get the chance to explain your side of the story.

Your benefit may be reduced if you fail to meet certain agreements. For example, if you do not cooperate well with a reintegration process or if you yourself quit your job without good reason. You will then receive less or no benefit for a period of time. The customer director determines this.

Are you homeless and do you receive a letter address from us? Then you have to meet certain obligations. For example, you must do everything you can to get your own living space as quickly as possible. Have you not done your best to find accommodation? Then your benefit may be reduced. Then your legality consultant will determine this.