Claims & tips
Claims & tips
Valuable tips on claims & more
If you have a hearing impairment, you can take advantage of a wide range of support from various institutions in Austria. Here you can find a list of your rights, funding entitlements, grants and other tips that can be helpful in everyday life.
Table of contents
Financial support
Below you will find direct links to the relevant offices. This data is regularly checked to ensure that it is up to date. Should you nevertheless come across incorrect information or if you are missing important information, we would be pleased to hear from you so that this page can be updated immediately.
Determination of the degree of disability
In order to be able to assert any claims, the degree of disability of your child must be determined. This is measured according to the type and severity of the functional impairment by the so-called EVO assessment regulation.
You can find more information at https://sozialministeriumservice.at/
Increased family allowance
The increased family allowance is paid in addition to the general family allowance and is granted for as long as the general family allowance is granted. The prerequisite for receiving the increased family allowance is a 50% degree of disability of the child or, if the child is an adult, the fact that the child is permanently unable to support him/herself.
The office responsible for applying for the increased family allowance is the local tax office.
If you are applying for or receiving care allowance for the child, please make sure you inform the institution paying the care allowance that you are applying for or receiving the increased family allowance for the child. Please note that an amount of € 60 from the increased family allowance will be deducted from the care allowance.
Care allowance
Care allowance can be received if the following conditions are met:
- Permanent need for care and assistance due to a physical, mental or psychological disability or sensory impairment that is expected to last at least six months
- Permanent need for care of at least more than 65 hours per month
- Habitual residence in Austria, whereby care allowance can also be granted in the EEA area and in Switzerland under certain conditions
The amount of the care allowance is determined in seven stages, depending on the extent of the care required and regardless of the cause of the need for care.
You can apply for care allowance from your social insurance provider:
- Pension insurance institution
- Insurance Institution for Public Employees, Railways and Mines (BVAEB)
- Social insurance for the self-employed (SVS)
Further information can be found in the brochure: "Information on care allowance - explained in plain language"
Disability pass
The disability pass is an official photo ID and serves as standardized proof of a disability (regardless of the type of disability). Persons with a degree of disability or a reduction in earning capacity of at least 50 percent who are resident or ordinarily resident in Austria are entitled to a disability pass.
You submit the application to the Social Ministry Service. Having a disability pass does not entitle you to any financial benefits. However, you can obtain discounts (sometimes also in other EU countries) on presentation of the document, for example on admission to various cultural and leisure facilities, events, sights, excursion destinations, ski resorts, public transport, etc.
Everyday school life
Numerous additional external technologies, such as the MED-EL AudioLink, make it easier for children with hearing implants to concentrate on individual sound sources at school, such as the teacher's voice, films or music. Parents can apply for a grant or subsidy from the school management or the relevant authorities in the federal states. You can find the right addresses in your federal state here:
Teaching with hearing impairment
Many people with hearing impairments who are working or in training are often unaware that people with disabilities have a number of entitlements to special support, special protection against dismissal and - if provided for in the collective agreement, employment law or company agreements - entitlement to additional leave.
Even the employer can receive subsidies and claim tax benefits when employing disabled employees with disabilities; the payment of the equalization tax is also no longer required.
Employees with disabilities can receive the following benefits:
Subsidies such as wage cost subsidies for obtaining and securing employment, mobility aids, technical work aids, workplace adaptations or subsidies for vocational training and further education
Special protection against dismissal - the employer must obtain the approval of the Disability Committee before giving notice. However, protection against dismissal only applies after a certain period of employment.
Entitlement to additional leave - insofar as this is provided for in the collective agreement, employment law or company agreements - and entitlement to a wage tax allowance or tax benefits
Discrimination in the world of work: The Disability Employment Act prohibits discrimination against employees with disabilities. Nevertheless, it happens time and again that, for example, employees are not hired because of their disability despite having sufficient qualifications. This is not permitted. Employees may not be discriminated against on the basis of their disability - in particular not when establishing the employment relationship, determining pay, granting social benefits, other working conditions, further training measures, promotion or termination of the employment relationship.
All relevant information on "Working with a hearing impairment" can be found here!
Tax equalization
As part of the annual employee tax assessment, taxpayers can claim costs for extraordinary expenses due to the disability of a child.
Flat-rate allowances:
If the child does NOT receive an increased family allowance, an annual allowance is granted depending on the degree of disability (but at least 25 percent). No deductible is applied, but no care-related cash benefits may be drawn.
If increased family allowance is received for the child, a monthly allowance is granted. However, this must be reduced by any care-related cash benefits received.
Instead of the allowances, non-regular expenses for aids (e.g. hearing aids etc.) can be claimed.
Furthermore, costs for medical treatment can be claimed in addition to the flat-rate allowances. These include doctor and hospital costs, spa costs for medically prescribed cures, therapy costs, costs for medication in connection with disabilities and associated travel costs (actual costs or official mileage allowance).
Broadcasting fee (ORF contribution)
Beneficiaries with disabilities have the option of applying for an exemption from broadcasting fees.
Learn more
Green electricity flat rate
Exemption or capping of green electricity subsidy costs - disabled people with a disability have the option of applying for an exemption from the green electricity flat rate.
Cell phone tariffs
Some mobile phone providers offer special, often discounted tariffs for people with hearing impairments:
Transport service
In order to provide children with disabilities with barrier-free access to education, the City of Vienna provides a free transportation service. Transportation to Vienna's public compulsory schools is financed by the Vienna Schools Department (MA 56) and provided by qualified transport services as part of collective transportation. The routes are planned and the pupils to be picked up are arranged by the transport services in close cooperation with the school administrators and parents/guardians. The children are picked up from home and taken directly to the agreed drop-off point in front of the school. After school, they are picked up from there and driven home or to after-school care.
All forms and detailed information on the transport service are available from the respective school management. The Vienna Social Fund organizes the transport service for children to kindergartens or schools whose costs are not covered by MA 56.
More about the transport service (Vienna GV)
More about reimbursement of travel expenses (FSW)
If you need a transport service for your kindergarten or school child outside the federal capital of Vienna, it is best to contact either the town hall/municipal office of your home town or the local aid organizations.
ÖBB
With the Disabled Pass, your child can travel with ÖBB at a 50% discount throughout Austria. You do not need a discount card, but save directly on every journey with ÖBB. This also applies to the Austria-wide climate ticket. To take advantage of the offer, you need an Austrian Disabled Person's Pass for your child with the following details:
- Indication of the degree of disability of at least 70 percent or
Entry "The holder of the pass is entitled to a fare reduction in accordance with the Federal Disability Act." - Accompanying persons or assistance dogs travel free of charge if this is noted in the disability pass.
Valuable tips
Additional supporting technology
MED-EL offers a range of connection options for your child's audio processor. These can be used to easily connect technical devices such as telephones, TV sets etc. to the implant system. You can find more information here.
Useful additional devices for hearing implant users, such as alarm systems, FM systems, streaming devices, etc., are offered by the company ihrzubeHÖR and the ZENTRUM HÖREN:
Migration & Diversity
Hearing and language support for implanted children relies heavily on the active cooperation of the parents. For families with a migration background, this very often means that communication with the child at home is primarily in the mother tongue. This gives the child the opportunity to participate in social family life right from the start.
Nevertheless, your child will be confronted with the national language from kindergarten age at the latest and will therefore grow up bilingual - an additional challenge for your child with a hearing impairment. This means that you as parents also need to be as well informed as possible so that nothing stands in the way of your child's positive development.
Here you will find contacts for support and the opportunity to exchange ideas in order to provide you as parents with the best possible support during this time, despite possible language barriers:
Insurance
After cochlear implantation, the initial fitting of the audio processor takes place at the clinic around three to four weeks later. The audio processor is a high-tech device with a monetary value of at least € 10,000. Even if Austria's social insurance covers repairs and services, this does not apply to loss, theft and misuse. For this reason, it is advisable to take out private insurance for voice processors. Both Allianz and Donau-Versicherung offer corresponding insurance policies.
Here you can find the forms of both insurance providers: Insurance forms
It is not what we experience, but how we feel,
what we experience determines our destiny.
Marie Baroness von Ebner-Eschenbach
