Background information

The Extraordinary immediate assistance is a one-time benefit based for Act No. 111/2006, on assistance to people in material distress. It supports those whose income is lower than the amount of the subsistence minimum and are not able to solve their situation in any other way (unemployment benefit, support from family etc.). Citizens in need can apply at the Labour Office and have to provide their overall financial and material situation.

The Extraordinary immediate assistance COVID-19 has introduced an easier administrative process for people in need - in place of providing overall financial and material situation, the applicant provides information on his/her current account balance.

Content of measure

Eligible are in general people, who are in need because of anti-COVID-19 pandemic measure (typically single mothers staying with children at home as a result of schools closure).

Citizens in need can apply at the Labour Office and have to provide their current financial situation by the statement of their account and by proving the income and common expenditures of the household (rent or mortgage, food, energy bills etc.).

After the complex evaluation of a particular case, the Labour Office then decides if the applicant is supported or not. The minimum and maximum amount is not settled and depends on the decision of the Labour Office.

The benefit can be used to cover rent or mortgage, food, clothes, energy, internet and phone expenditure. It cannot cover any other expenditures.

Use of measure

According to the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs of the Czech Republic, Ministerstvo práce a sociálních věcí České republiky, MPSV ČR , in the period of 1 March 2020 until 29 October 2020, there were 26,561 applications for this support, out of which 18,097 were approved for the support in the total amount of CZK 59,671,531 (€2,287,580 approx.).

According to the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs of the Czech Republic, Ministerstvo práce a sociálních věcí České republiky, MPSV ČR , in the period from 1 March 2020 until October 2021, a total of 23,235 applicants were supported.

Target groups

Workers	Businesses	Citizens
Does not apply to workers	Does not apply to businesses	Applies to all citizens

Actors and funding

Actors	Funding
National government Public employment service	National funds

Social partners

Social partners' role in designing the measure and form of involvement:

	Trade unions	Employers' organisations
Role	Informed	Informed
Form	Not applicable	Not applicable

Social partners' role in the implementation, monitoring and assessment phase:

• Social partners jointly
• Main level of involvement: Peak or cross-sectoral level

Involvement

Social partners, which are members of the tripartite body (Council of economic and social agreement, Rada hospodářské a sociální dohody, RHSD) were informed and consulted in both formal (requested by institutional settings) and informal ways. They are not involved in the management of policy measures.

Views and reactions

Supportive.

Sources

• 19 October 2020: Labour Office: MOP COVID-19 Information for applicants/Úřad práce: MOP COVID-19 Informace pro žadatele (www.uradprace.cz)
• 30 October 2020: MPSV: One-time benefit statistics/MPSV: MOP statistika (www.mpsv.cz)