Assistance to children who lost parental care

The Law on Benefits for Children

1. To every child raised in a family, social family, child care institution or foster center ispaid child benefit;to a child raised in a family ispaid additional child benefit in same conditions as to all children (see section "Assistance to pregnant women and families raising children").

2. For a child raised in a family, social family, child care institution, foster center:

• a child, placed under guardianship in a family, social family,  child care institution or foster center, during the foster care period receives a monthly guardianship (curatorship) benefit:
• for child from birth to the age of 6 years amount of guardianship (curatorship) benefit is 5.2 BSB (from 1 January 2024 - EUR 286);
•  for child from 6 to 12 years of age amount of guardianship (curatorship) benefit is 6 BSB (from 1 January 2024 - EUR 330);
•  for child from 12 to 18 years of age and fordisabled children (without regard the age limit) amount of guardianship (curatorship) benefit is 6.5 BSB (from 1 January 2024 - EUR 357.5).
• per each child placed under guardianship in a family, social family or foster center shall be paid a targeted guardianship (curatorship) benefit of 4 BSB (from 1 January 2024 - EUR 220). A guardianship (curatorship) benefit supplement in the amount of 4 BSB (from 1 January 2024 - EUR 220) is paid if upon the expiration of the foster care due to attaining the majority, emancipation or contracting a marriage a person lives and is maintained with a former guardian and he (she) is study according to thegeneral curriculumbut not longer until he (she) reaches the age of 23.

The foster care benefit is not granted to children who are detained, arrested, imprisoned, on the run or recognised by the court as a person with unknown whereabouts and where the temporary foster care was established for a child at the request of parents who are temporarily away outside the Republic of Lithuania.

3. Upon expiry of the foster care due to majority, emancipation or marriage, an individual:

• receives a lump-sum benefit of 75 BSB (from 1 January 2024 - EUR 4 125) to acquire or accommodate housing.
• receives a monthly foster care benefit of 6.5 BSB (from 1 January 2024 - EUR 357.5) if the individual continues uninterrupted education at the general education school, vocational or high school as a full time student (including the period of academic leave), notwithstanding if he works or not, as well as in the cases when both parents (the only parent (foster parent)) of individual are dead. The benefit is paid to such individual until he is 24.

The individual entitled to the benefit or a person authorised by him according to the procedure laid down in the laws of the Republic of Lithuania may apply for the benefits. Applications for foster care benefits may be filed from the day of entitlement to receive the benefit. If a person applies later, the benefit will be granted and paid from the date of entitlement to the benefit but not for more than 12 previous months from the date of submission of all documents necessary for the benefit issue.

4.Child temporary care benefit amounting to 6 BSB (from 1 January 2024 - EUR 330) is paid in accordance with the procedurew established by the Law of the Republic of Lithuania on the Fundamentals of Protection of the Rights of the Child  for the temporary carer during the period of temporary guardianship of a child.