Can I apply for IOAW when my WW ends?
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Detailed explanation, checklist and sources
If you were born before 1 January 1965 and became unemployed after fifty, IOAW may supplement household income after fully exhausting more than three months of WW. The municipality decides. Dutch IOAW and IOW are different schemes.
On this page
1. Check age and WW history
This Dutch WW route requires birth before 1 January 1965, unemployment after your fiftieth birthday, and full exhaustion of WW lasting more than three months. You must not yet have reached AOW age. Record exact dates rather than relying on your current age alone.
2. Separate income from assets
The municipality assesses insufficient household income. A partner's income counts; minor children's income does not. Assets are disregarded for IOAW. Have unusual income categories checked separately because receipts are not all treated alike. A bank balance is not a complete assessment of income.
3. IOAW after WGA or under older transitional rules
There are two possible alternatives to the WW route. Did you become entitled to earnings-related WGA after your 50th birthday, and did your WGA later stop because your assessed incapacity fell below 35%? Or are you partially incapacitated, below 80%, and were you already receiving IOAW on 28 December 2005? Ask the municipality to assess these distinct conditions. They are alternatives to the WW condition, not additional requirements on top of that route. Birth before 1 January 1965 and insufficient household income remain necessary; a partner’s income counts. Gather the award and termination decisions with dates and percentages and, where relevant, the old IOAW decision. Use your municipality’s official application route. The other conditions remain applicable; the municipality decides.
4. Record your household
Living arrangements and possible cost-sharing household members can affect the amount. Collect WW decisions, household details and income information for both partners. Ask your municipality which evidence it requires. Missing information leaves eligibility uncertain; our preparation does not calculate a final entitlement or benefit amount.
5. Check the local application route
Rijksoverheid refers to UWV/werk.nl, with the municipality making the decision. Municipalities may provide their own online route. Start with official information for where you live and ask before WW ends when applications open. Rotterdam's deadlines or counter appointments do not automatically apply elsewhere.
6. Keep the application and decision
Keep the receipt and answer requests for information by their stated deadline. Check the starting date, income deductions and conditions in the decision. A preliminary check is not an award.
7. Seek help with the next step
IOAW involves work and reporting duties, also for a partner where applicable. Discuss limitations with the municipality. If you disagree with its decision, immediately check the objection procedure and deadline in that decision. Our own help-request route supports preparation but submits neither an application nor an objection.
Do savings mean I cannot receive IOAW?
Not automatically: assets are disregarded for IOAW. Your and your partner's income still count, and other conditions apply. Do not confuse this assessment with general social assistance or IOW.
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Birth date and age when unemployed
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- Birth date and age when unemployed
- WW duration and end decision
- Both partners' income
- Household and living arrangements
- Municipal route and required evidence
- Receipt, decision and objection route
Contact with a lawyer
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View the current application processSources
Need personal assistance? Request a lawyer through our chat. We explain the next step; submitting a request does not engage a lawyer. The links below support the legal information.
Rijksoverheid · Voorwaarden IOAW ↗Gemeente Rotterdam · IOAW, plaatselijk aanvraagvoorbeeld ↗Rijksoverheid · Verplichtingen en bezwaar IOAW ↗Wet IOAW · artikel 2 ↗Sources may be in Dutch. General information about Dutch law, not individual legal advice.