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Care benefit for a sick child

Translated: translated from the Norwegian original with the help of a language model, and may contain errors. The Norwegian version is the authoritative one. See the Norwegian original →

Income when you must be away from work to care for a child who is seriously ill and followed up by specialist healthcare services.

Norwegian original last checked against official sources: 26 October 2026. Rules and figures change, so always check the official site before you act.

Care benefit (pleiepenger) secures your income when you must be away from work to care for a child who is seriously ill.

Do you qualify? Check these points

According to NAV, you may be entitled to care benefit if all of this is true:

  1. The child is under 18 and has an illness, an injury or a congenital condition. It can be physical or mental. The child does not need a diagnosis, and there is no list of approved diagnoses.
  2. The child needs supervision and care all day, more than is usual for children of the same age. The child cannot be left alone.
  3. The child is followed up by specialist healthcare services, such as the hospital, and a doctor there writes the medical statement. If the child is only followed by the GP, it normally does not give entitlement.
  4. You are part of the child's daily care.
  5. You lose income: your working hours or income go down by at least 20 percent.
  6. You have worked for at least four weeks before the care period starts, and have an annual income of at least NOK 68,275. Sickness benefit, unemployment benefit, parental benefit and care allowance can count as work. Work assessment allowance (AAP) does not give entitlement on its own.
  7. You are under 70 and a member of the National Insurance Scheme.

If point 2 or 3 does not fit, care allowance (omsorgspenger) is often the right scheme. If the child has a chronic illness or disability, you can apply for extra care days. See also attendance benefit for extra supervision and care in everyday life.

How much and for how long?

Care benefit covers income up to six times the basic amount (6 G). You get graded care benefit if you work partially, or the child is in a care arrangement such as kindergarten or school. If the child is in the care arrangement more than 80 percent of a working week, you do not get care benefit. The benefit is taxed, and you get holiday pay for the first 12 weeks of the year. According to NAV, there is in principle no time limit as long as the conditions are met and the child is under 18.

How to apply

You apply digitally or on paper. You must attach a medical statement from specialist healthcare services, and your employer provides income information. NAV stated on 21 September 2026 a processing time of about eight weeks. You must apply within three months after the care period starts.

Does it affect your pension if you reduce your working hours?

Your retirement pension is built up from your income, so a lower income can mean lower accrual. NAV has a scheme that makes up for this, care credits (omsorgsopptjening). It gives pension accrual as if you had an income of up to 4.5 times the basic amount (NOK 614,471 according to NAV) in the years you have extra care responsibilities. If you earn more than this yourself, it gives nothing extra.

  • Children under 6: you get it automatically if you receive child benefit for the child.
  • Sick children or children with disabilities aged 6 to 18: if the child receives attendance benefit (hjelpestønad) at rate 3 or 4, the person receiving child benefit gets the credits automatically. Otherwise you must apply yourself, at the earliest in July and at the latest in the second year after the care year.
  • After the child turns 18: you must apply, and the care must be at least 22 hours a week.

You find the application at nav.no/omsorgsopptjening-barn (Norwegian). NAV's pages do not say directly whether the care benefits themselves give pension accrual, nor what it means for your occupational pension from your employer. Ask NAV about the retirement pension, and your employer or pension company about the occupational pension.

If you are refused

You can complain. The deadline is stated in the decision. Read Complain about a NAV decision.

NAV. Care benefit for a sick child (Norwegian) →

Sources

Kontaktpunkt24 gives general information, not legal advice. If you need help with your own case, contact a lawyer, a legal aid service, or the relevant authority.

This page is translated from Norwegian with the help of a language model, and may contain errors. The Norwegian version is always the authoritative one.