In order to improve the availability of the housing benefit by providing the opportunity to receive this benefit to a larger range of people with higher incomes, a coefficient of 3 will be applicable for the period from 1 September 2022 to 30 April 2023. Therefore, by filing an application for the granting of a housing benefit to the social service from October 1, the person will present and the social service will calculate the housing benefit according to the bills received in September.
Increased coefficients make it possible for a single person or a household of several persons to keep more funds for covering daily expenses, including the purchase of food, and to qualify for a housing benefit with higher incomes than previously.
As a result of the increase in the coefficient, for the purpose of calculation of the amount of housing benefit the guaranteed minimum income threshold for the calculation of the amount of housing benefit will be 327 euro for the first or only person in the household and 228 euro for other persons in the household for all households.
This is provided for by the amendments to the “Law on Measures to Reduce the Extraordinary Increase in Energy Prices” adopted at the government meeting on Tuesday, August 9. They still need to be reviewed and adopted by the Saeima.
The draft law provides that co-financing for local governments of 50% of the actual expenses on housing benefits is maintained throughout the period and in the future.
The draft law also provides support for seniors, persons with disabilities and survivors. From 1 November this year to 31 May 2023, a benefit of 30 euro per month will be provided if the amount of the pension, compensation or state social security benefit does not exceed 300 euro per month. The benefit of 20 euro per month is provided if the amount of the pension, compensation or state social security benefit ranges from 301 euro to 509 euro per month and the benefit of 10 euro per month, if the amount of the pension, compensation or state social security benefit ranges from 510 euro to 603 euro per month. If the old-age pension is, for example, 300.94 euro, the cents after the decimal point shall be discarded and the person will be paid a state benefit of 30 euro per month.
This state benefit will be granted and paid to persons living in Latvia who are granted old age, disability or survivor’s pensions in the Republic of Latvia from 1 November 2022 to 31 May 2023, including premature pensions and pensions granted in advance, special state pensions, retirement pensions for those who have reached the age necessary for the granting of an old-age pension, but whom an old-age pension has not been granted, recipients of a retirement pension who have not reached the age necessary for the granting of an old-age pension and who have a disability. The benefit will also be due to the recipients of compensation for loss of working capacity or compensation for survivors and recipients of the state social security benefit.
The state benefit in the amount of 30 euro will also be granted and paid to persons living in Latvia who are recipients of extra payments granted by Latvia to the family state benefit for a child with a disability.
Support to compensate for the increase in energy prices is intended for households using electricity, natural gas, wood briquettes, wood pellets and firewood, as well as district heating services.
For firewood purchased from 1 May 2022 to 30 April 2023, the price level from which the support will be started is 40 euro/bulk m3 (approximately 35 euro/MWh). The state will compensate 50% of the increase in costs (i.e. if costs exceed 40 euro/bulk m3), but not more than 15 euro/bulk m3. The maximum amount of support per household will be 35 euro/bulk m3. The support period is from 1 May 2022 to 30 April 2023. Applications for support will have to be submitted to the local government from 1 October 2022 to 30 April 2023.
In turn, for firewood purchased before August 31 this year and for which no proof of payment can be presented, the state will compensate fixed support of 60 euro per housing. If an additional firewood support application with proof of payment is submitted for the same housing, further support is granted for the volume exceeding 60 euro, taking into account the above-mentioned conditions for firewood prices and volume. Applications for support will have to be submitted to the local government from 1 October to 30 November 2022.
For wood briquettes and wood pellets, the price threshold is set at 300 euro per tonne (around 65 euro/MWh). Here too, 50% of the increase in costs will be compensated (i.e. if costs exceed 300 euro/tonne), but not more than 100 euro/tonne. The maximum amount of support per household will be 10 tonnes. The support period is from 1 May 2022 to 30 April 2023.
For households using electricity for heating, support will be granted to those users, whose consumption is more than 500 kWh per month but not more than 2000 kWh based on the electric heating system self-declaration principle. The state will compensate 50% of the electricity price, which will exceed 0.160 euro/kWh, but not more than 100 euro/MWh. Any household will have to pay for the first 500 kWh consumed according to the electricity price determined by the electricity trader, but the consumption above that threshold will be compensated. The support period is from 1 October 2022 to 30 April 2023, applications shall be submitted to the local government from 1 November 2022 until 31 May 2023.
Households using electricity, wood pellets, wood briquettes or firewood for heating will have to go with supporting documents to the local government, which will decide on granting the compensation. Then the state will reimburse this compensation to the local government.
For households using natural gas for heating, the amount of compensation is fixed at 30 euro/MWh (i.e. 0,030 euro/kWh) for those users, whose monthly consumption exceeds 221 kWh/month (21 m3/month). The support period is from 1 July 2022 to 30 April 2023. The support will be applied to household bills automatically.
It is important to emphasise that for natural gas and electricity users who pay for the service on the basis of the balanced payment principle, the regulation obliges natural gas and electricity traders to recalculate the balanced payment, taking into account actual household consumption and making payment adjustments for previous months. Natural gas users will receive a recalculation with the support included in September, and it will include support for July and August.
Similarly, in the period from 1 October 2022 to 30 April 2023, the support for compensation of the district heating service fee is also planned. Also in this case, the amount of compensation to cover the increase in heating costs is set at 50% of the price above 68 euro/MWh. The support will be applied to household bills automatically.