Living allowance for Ukrainian refugees

• You have fled Ukraine.
• You are currently living in The Hague with a host family or you are staying in a long-term municipal shelter location.
• You are registered in the Personal Records Database (BRP) as a resident of The Hague. You will then get a citizen service number (BSN). Read more about Begin link: registering at the municipality for Ukrainians, end link. .
• You have an identity document.

Minor refugees

Are you a refugee (under the age of 18) who has fled without parents (unaccompanied minor)? Then you have the right to a living allowance. You need to be registered at the Nidos Foundation. The municipality will do this for you. You can also register yourself. To do this, call tel. 088 – 501 18 85 or send an email to Begin link: oekraine@nidos.nl, end link. .

• Nidos will apply for guardianship at the court.
• Nidos will take care of practical matters and a safe place to live if you do not have one.
• You will get a living allowance from the municipality until the court has appointed guardianship.
• Once Nidos has been appointed guardianship, it will supervise your care. At this point you will get a living allowance from Nidos (as of the 1st day of the following month). Read more information on the Begin external link: website of the Nidos Foundation(External link), end external link..

Please note: you will not get a living allowance if you are 18 years or older and already have paid work or you get another allowance from the Dutch government. Is your income less than the living allowance. Then you can get a living allowance as a supplement to your income.

You and the family members you are living with will no longer have the right to a living allowance if:

• You start doing paid work or you get another allowance from the Dutch government and the income is the same or higher than the living allowance.   
• You are renting or have purchased your own house 
• You do not hold the correct residence permit
• You do not report any changes within 14 days
• You do not report or provide the details within 14 days, if the municipality requests this.

You must report any changes in your situation to the municipality. You can do this by calling (070) 353 80 24. If you have no right to a living allowance, it will stop as of the first day of the following month.

If you do not report a change, you will be receiving the living allowance illegally. The municipality can then ask you to pay back any extra living allowance you received.

1. I am registered at the municipality

If you are registered in The Hague, you can apply for a living allowance in The Hague City Hall, Spui 70. You do not need to make an appointment to do this. Take the following documents with you for your application:

• your proof of registration, showing your Begin link: citizen service number (BSN), end link.
• your identity document
• bank card for your Dutch bank account. See Begin external link: Dutch Payments Association(External link), end external link..

2. I am not yet registered at the municipality

You can apply for a living allowance only once you are registered as a resident of The Hague or when you have made an appointment to register.

• Make an appointment to register in the Personal Records Database (BRP) by calling (070) 353 80 24.
• During the telephone call, you can indicate that you also want a living allowance.
• Take the following documents with you to your appointment to apply for a living allowance:
  • your identity document
  • bank card for your Dutch bank account. See Begin external link: Dutch Payments Association(External link), end external link..
• The appointments are held at The Hague City Hall, Spui 70

For unaccompanied minors: I am living with a host family

The Nidos Foundation will first check if you are staying in a safe place. If Nidos thinks the place where you are living is not safe, the municipality will look for a different shelter location for you. If Nidos thinks the place where you are living is safe, the host family can apply for a living allowance for you. The host family will receive an email from the municipality with a decision on the application.

Needed for your application

The following documents are needed to apply for the living allowance:

• Registration in the Personal Records Database (BSN)
• Valid identity document for the host family where you are staying
• The email with the approval from the Nidos Foundation (if you are staying with a host family)

For more information look at the Begin external link: website of the Nidos Foundation(External link), end external link..

No. After you apply the municipality will check whether you have the right to a living allowance. You will receive an email approximately 5 days after the appointment.

In the table below you can which amounts you will receive in your situation.

Are you living in a municipal shelter? The municipality can decide to provide meals for you. You will then not get money for food.

Adults and children get a living allowance every month. The living allowance consists of:

• clothing allowance
• food allowance
  Refugees will only get money for food if they do not get meals in a municipal shelter. Small families receive more food money than large families.
• extra amount (allowance)
  Refugees only receive an allowance if they are living with a host family. This amount is on top of the food allowance and clothing allowance. Refugees can use this money, for example, to pay for public transport, visiting relatives or sports. Or to contribute to the costs of the host family. But this is not mandatory.

No living allowance if you work or get another allowance

If you or a family member aged 18 years or older gets an income from work or another allowance, the living allowance for the whole family can be stopped. This will happen when your income is the same or higher than the living allowance. Is your income lower than the living allowance you receive? Then the municipality will supplement your income up to the living allowance you received before you started working. Submit your salary pay slip to the municipality. You will get more money from working. If you work 3 days a week for minimum wage, you will earn more than the living allowance.

Living allowance amounts

In the table below you can see the amounts for the clothing allowance, food allowance and the extra allowance. How high the allowance is depends on the refugee’s age and the size of the family.

As of 1 January 2025:

The living allowance will be transferred to your personal Duch bank account. Take your bank card with you to the application interview. The living allowance will be transferred to your bank account once your application is approved.

Refugees from Ukraine can quickly open a payment account with a bank or other payment service provider after arriving in the Netherlands. Every payment account comes with an IBAN, a debit card and the possibility to bank and pay online using internet or a mobile app. Look for more information at Begin external link: Dutch Payments Association(External link), end external link..

You are allowed to leave the shelter a maximum of 28 days per calendar year. The municipality will add up all of these periods together. Have you been gone more than 28 days? Then the municipality will stop your living allowance. Always tell the municipality if you are leaving. Are you back again? Then visit the counter in person to show that you are back again. Otherwise the municipality will not be able to pay your living allowance.

Changes in your personal situation can affect your right to a living allowance. Report any changes on time. If you do not report changes (on time), you might have to pay back any extra living allowance you received. Or your living allowance will be stopped. You report the changes to the municipality:

• Call the Ukraine telephone line on (070) 353 80 24.
• Use form on this page. Print it out and fill it in. You can submit the form at the municipal counter: Advice and information counter at the Centrum district office (Spui 70). Or you can scan the completed form and send it by email to: Begin link: regeling.oekraine@denhaag.nl, end link.

Here are examples of situations when you need to report a change to the municipality:

• You are going to start doing paid work. Or you get another allowance.
• You are temporarily not staying in the shelter. You report when you will leave and you visit the counter as soon as you are back in the Netherlands.
• You are going to live together with your partner or you are splitting up with your partner.
• Your child is turning 18 years.
• You are going to live somewhere else. The municipality want to stay in contact with you. How much living allowance you get depends on your living situation. This is why the municipality wants your new home address. If you buy or rent a home, you have no more right to a living allowance.
• You have (opened) a new bank account at a Dutch bank (where you want to receive your living allowance). The municipality needs a copy of your bank card. The card shows the account number and the name of the account holder. (If this information does not match, the municipality cannot make the payment.) Afterwards you will receive the payment in your own account.

No, you do not have to report the living allowance in your tax return because it does not count as income. You will therefore also not receive an annual statement for the living allowance you received.

Always report any changes in your situation to the municipality. Will you or somebody from your family start working? Then the municipality will not stop your living allowance right away. The municipality will first look at whether your income is enough. Is the income lower than the living allowance you receive? Then the municipality will supplement the difference so that you keep receiving the same amount as before you started working. Submit your salary pay slip or employment contract quickly to the municipality.

Will something change in your situation, such as extra income or changes in your family? Report this to the municipality within 14 days. If you do not do this, your living allowance could be stopped or you might have to pay back money because you received too much. You can report changes using the form under the question ‘Why and how do I have to report any changes?’.

You are allowed to leave the shelter a maximum of 28 days per calendar year. The municipality will add up all of these periods together. Have you been gone more than 28 days? Then the municipality will stop your living allowance. Always tell the municipality if you are leaving. Are you back again? Then visit the counter in person. Otherwise the municipality will not be able to pay your living allowance.

Will something change in your family situation? For example: you or somebody from your family will give birth or will move. Your 18-year-old child will come to live with you or you will get married or divorced. Report this to the municipality. If you do not do this, your living allowance will stop.

You are going to rent or buy a home or room. Report this to the municipality. If you do not do this, your living allowance will stop.