Bill on the establishment of a new benefit system for children who have lost a parent passed the second reading

According to the Bill on Amendments to the Family Benefits Act and Other Act (547 SE),  initiated by the Government, from 1 October  2026, the survivor’s pension will be replaced with the survivor’s benefit, which will guarantee a monthly benefit to children who have lost a parent, regardless of the pension qualifying period or the number of children of the deceased parent. The purpose of the benefit to be established is to compensate for the costs of bringing up a child – partially in the event of the loss of a parent and fully in the event of the loss of both parents.

The amount of the survivor’s benefit will be uniform for children and will take into account the cost of maintaining the child and its real value will be preserved over time through indexation. According to the bill, the new base amount of the benefit will be EUR 272, and according to forecasts, the benefit to be paid out will reach approximately EUR 345 in 2026.

The survivor’s benefit will be paid until the child reaches the age of 19 or, if the child continues their studies, until the age of 21. Under the Bill, the circle of educational establishments that will allow receiving the benefit will be wider than for the survivor’s pension, and it will also be possible to receive the survivor’s benefit at the same time as the work ability allowance.

An Act was passed

The Riigikogu adopted the Act on Amendments to the Farm Animals Breeding Act (551 SE), initiated by the Government. It re-transposes the relevant European Union directive and establishes a regulation for horse competitions which was mistakenly omitted from the Act when the updated version was adopted.

According to the amendment, the conditions for competitions for equidae and the requirements for prior notification of the organisation of competitions are established. The conditions for competitions may not discriminate between equidae which are registered in Estonia and originate in Estonia and equidae of another Member State. The requirement does not apply at competitions organised for improving the breed and at historic and traditional events.

71 members of the Riigikogu supported the passing of the Act and there was one abstention.

A Bill was dropped from the proceedings

The Riigikogu rejected at the first reading the Bill on Amendments to the Riigikogu Rules of Procedure and Internal Rules Act (552 SE), initiated by Members of the Riigikogu Rain Epler, Kert Kingo and Arvo Aller. It was intended to lay down more clearly the rules for meeting the obligations of members of the Government and other persons to appear before committees of the Riigikogu and to present documents.

Mart Helme from the Estonian Conservative People’s Party Group and Lauri Laats from the Centre Party Group took the floor during the debate.

The Constitutional Committee moved to reject the Bill at the first reading. 45 members of the Riigikogu supported the rejection of the Bill and 15 voted against.

Verbatim record of the sitting (in Estonian)

Video recording will be available to watch later on the Riigikogu YouTube channel.

Riigikogu Press Service
Karin Kangro
+372 631 6356, +372 520 0323
karin.kangro@riigikogu.ee
Questions: press@riigikogu.ee

Link uudisele: Bill on the establishment of a new benefit system for children who have lost a parent passed the second reading

Source: Parliament of Estonia