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Recovery

Sometimes we may pay you too much earnings-related daily allowance.

This may happen when, for example, it only turns out afterwards that you were not entitled to earnings-related daily allowance. Sometimes it may also happen that we calculate your earnings-related daily allowance incorrectly for some reason.

Such overpaid or unduly paid earnings-related daily allowance must be reclaimed under the law.

Why can earnings-related daily allowance be paid in incorrect amounts?

We may pay earnings-related daily allowance incorrectly if we have incorrect information at our disposal or some information is missing altogether when we process your application.

This typically pertains to circumstances that have not yet occurred. For example, a pension that prevents the payment of earnings-related daily allowance may be granted retroactively, in which case it was not known when you submitted your application, nor was it known when we processed your application. In such a situation, everything was in order at the time when the earnings-related daily allowance was paid, but the retroactive pension renders the daily allowance already paid unfounded.

It is also possible that we make an error when issuing a decision. The sums may be mistyped, or we may fail to notice a document that would have affected the amount of the daily allowance. According to the law, any excessive payment due to our error must also be reclaimed.

If we do not receive information on salary income, social benefits or, for example, holiday pay received during a lay-off period in the application, we may miss something. A decision made based on incorrect or incomplete information may result in us paying you too much earnings-related daily allowance.

Fill out the application carefully

To avoid claims for recovery, be sure to carefully state in the application all your periods of employment, sick days, vacation days, changes to other social benefits, and any other factors that may affect your entitlement to a daily allowance.

When you submit an application in OmaYTK, our online service will help you in filling out the application.

If you are uncertain whether a specific change will affect your daily allowance, mention it in your application. You can also contact us, and we can evaluate the situation together. Lack of awareness about the provisions of the law will not serve as sufficient ground for waiving the claim for recovery.

How will the recovery be carried out?

When we notice an incorrect payment, we will check the decisions concerning the matter and send you a hearing letter in which we describe the situation, and you are provided with an opportunity to tell us your view on the case.

If you request that the claim for recovery be adjusted, we will also clarify your economic and social situation in conjunction with the hearing. This information allows us to assess whether it is possible for us to adjust or waive the claim for recovery.

In conjunction with the hearing, we will also ask for your consent to correct erroneous decisions where applicable. If you do not give your consent, we will ask the Social Security Appeal Board to erase the decisions. Giving your consent does not imply your acceptance of the claim for recovery. Even if you give your consent, you can still appeal against the claim for recovery if you wish.

When we receive your reply, we will process the case again and you will receive new, revised decisions and a decision on the claim for recovery. At the same time, you will also receive bank transfer forms for returning the excess payment to us.

If you think that the decision on the claim for recovery is misguided or you do not accept the sum being reclaimed, you can lodge an appeal. We will suspend the claim for recovery for the duration of the appeal process.

When we issue a decision on a claim for recovery, we also prepare a repayment plan.

You can contact us and suggest a repayment schedule that is suitable for you. The whole sum need not be repaid all at once, but instead you can agree on an instalment plan with us.

Adjusting the claim for recovery

We may waive a claim for recovery, in whole or in part, if you so request and it is a fair solution.

Waiver of a claim for recovery means that you don’t have to pay back anything. Partial waiver means that you only have to pay back part of the amount being recovered.

Adjustment always requires that the claim for recovery is not due to your actions. If you have deliberately provided us with false information or omitted important information, we cannot adjust the claim for recovery.

The decision on adjustment is based on a clarification of your economic and social situation. To this end, we need you to provide us with a reliable account of your income and expenses. We also take into account if, for example, you are ill or there are other stressful factors in your life situation that affect your ability to repay the earnings-related daily allowance.

When any adjustment is considered, we will assess the overall situation. Hence, a temporary lack of means or momentary indebtedness do not alone constitute grounds for adjustment. Furthermore, errors made by us or the authorities do not automatically mean that the claim for recovery will be adjusted or waived. However, we will take these factors into account when the overall situation is assessed. If there are other reasons for waiving the claim for recovery in whole or in part, we can adjust the claim for recovery.

Suspected misconduct

Sometimes we may have a reason to suspect that you have deliberately misled us when applying for earnings-related daily allowance and thus caused the excess payment of the benefit. In such a case, we will also request a statement from you on the suspected fraudulent conduct in conjunction with the hearing.

Fraudulence in applying for benefit may result in an admonition, warning, or even termination of unemployment fund membership.

If the fraudulent conduct is repeated or not minor in nature, we are obliged to file a request for investigation with the police. In such a case, the police will investigate whether there is reason to suspect a criminal offence and whether at issue is a criminal case that will be forwarded to a public prosecutor. The possible sanctions include fines or even imprisonment.