The Labour, Social Affairs and the Family Ministry has launched preparations for legislative changes linked to the 'No School, No Benefits' initiative, with the new legislation expected to take effect as of 1 January 2027, Labour Minister Erik Tomáš (Hlas-SD) announced at a joint press conference with Education Minister Tomas Drucker (Hlas-SD) and Children's Commissioner Jozef Mikloško on Tuesday.
According to the Labour Minister, a key change will be the expansion of the existing mechanism of the so-called special recipient. If a child doesn't attend school regularly, child benefit will first be redirected to a special recipient, typically the municipality. After this period, however, families risk losing the benefit entirely.
"If there is no improvement within three months, we'll withdraw the allowance completely for the next three months. This cycle will be repeated until the situation improves," said Tomas.
The measure will also apply in cases in which parents fail to cooperate with schools in addressing a child's problematic behaviour.
Education Minister Drucker underlined that the aim isn't to punish, but to get children to go to school. "The future awaits at school desks, but children have to be there for it to happen. If they aren't, the lag will be significant no matter how modern the schools and high-quality the teachers are," he said.
Alongside penalties, the state also plans to introduce motivational measures. One of these is to expand the allowance for dependent children in material need, which will no longer be tied only to compulsory school attendance but also to attendance at nursery school, secondary school or university.
Changes are also planned to the subsidy for school supplies for children from low-income families. This is set to increase from €33 to €50, while continuing to be paid not to parents but to schools.
The initiative has faced criticism from organisations focused on the protection of human rights. According to the Human Rights Coalition, under the pretext of combating truancy the initiative introduces a mechanism that punishes children for conditions beyond their control and shows signs of systemic discrimination. The organisations have therefore called on the ministry to abandon the plan.
The proposal is at an early stage of the legislative process, and, according to the minister, may still be amended during the consultation procedure. The ministry expects a broad debate, as the changes affect both the social benefits system and education.
Source: TASR
