Hearing aids and compensatory aids for persons with hearing loss
List of compensatory allowances for persons with disabilities:
- cash allowance for personal assistance,
- cash allowance for the purchase, training in the use and modification of the aid,
- cash allowance for the repair of the aid,
- cash allowance for the purchase of lifting equipment,
- cash allowance for the purchase of a passenger motor vehicle,
- cash allowance for the modification of a passenger motor vehicle,
- cash allowance for the modification of an apartment, family house or garage,
- cash allowance for transportation,
- cash allowance for compensation for increased expenses,
- cash allowance for care
More information can be found on the website Ministry of Labour, Social Affairs and Family of the Slovak Republic.
PROCEDURE FOR PROCESSING
Compensation for the social consequences of severe disability is the mitigation or overcoming of the social consequences of severe disability (hereinafter referred to as severe disability) by providing financial allowances for compensation according to Act No. 447/2008 Coll. on financial allowances for compensation.
There is no lower age limit for a child to be considered a person with a severe disability. There is an age restriction only for the care allowance, which can be applied for only from the child’s 6th year.
THE RIGHT TO COMPENSATION ALLOWANCE DOES NOT ARRIVE AUTOMATICALLY.
The specific health condition, social consequences of disability, and also financial circumstances are always assessed individually. The social consequences of disability are assessed as a disadvantage compared to a person without a disability of the same age and under the same conditions, which the person with disability is not able to overcome on their own. For example, if a 6-year-old child cannot speak, he or she is disadvantaged compared to a child without a disability.
If a child with a disability is placed in a center for children and families (children’s homes), based on Act No. 376/2022 Coll. and the amendment to the Compensation Act No. 447/2008 Coll., the center may request, on behalf of a child with a disability, the issuance of a parking permit and the granting of a personal assistance allowance, but also, for example, the provision of a financial allowance for the purchase of an aid.
Before submitting an application for compensation for disability, we recommend consulting the specific department of compensation for disability and assessment activities at the Social Welfare and Social Welfare Office in the applicant’s place of permanent residence.
Contacts of the Social Welfare and Social Welfare Office by region
For preliminary information on what compensation benefits you may be entitled to, you must look in the table Annex No. 3 to Act No. 447/2008 Coll.
Example situation:
If a doctor competent in the field of Phoniatrics has diagnosed you with bilateral practical deafness with impaired communication skills and your hearing loss is determined according to Fowler 55-100%, your type of disability will be assessed according to Annex No. 3, Section VII. “Damage to ENT organs (hearing, balance organ, respiratory and swallowing organs) and other ENT disabilities”. The degree of functional impairment of the listed disabilities according to Section VII. will be determined according to the degree of hearing loss (CSS according to Fowler expressed in percentages), speech impairment, as a result of hearing damage, tinnitus, ear pain, balance disorders, dizziness, social adaptability and limitations in communication skills. Quantitative hearing loss is assessed without the use of an aid (hearing aid).
According to the above example situation, you are entitled to purchase an aid (hearing aid, alarm clocks, vibrating watches, etc.), or other financial assistance.
APPLICATION SUBMISSION
The application is submitted to the Office of Labor, Social Affairs and Family at the applicant’s place of permanent residence together with current medical findings from a general practitioner (form) and specialist medical findings (not older than 6 months) that the applicant visits in connection with the ZZ. The application must be accompanied by a certificate of tax return filing or certificate of income of persons living in the household with a disability for the previous year in which the application is submitted (income pursuant to § 18, paragraph 3 is not considered income for the purposes of providing financial compensation) and a honorary declaration on a special form that the value of the property owned is less than €50,000.
A medical examiner from the ÚPSVaR, usually without the applicant (child) present, will examine the medical findings attached attached to the application and assesses whether the individual is a disabled person (if the degree of functional impairment is at least 50%). It proposes a date for a reassessment of the health status and conclusions on individual types of dependency.
- Filling out the application for the provision of a financial contribution for compensation – to be filled out by the applicant.
- Filling out the medical report for the assessment of compensation – to be filled out by the general practitioner.
- Declaration of assets for the purpose of providing compensation – to be filled out and signed by the applicant before a notary or a registry office by the authority.
The social worker of the ÚPSVaR will then assess the applicant’s overall social situation (in the case of a child, the entire family is assessed), his/her individual circumstances, family environment and the environment that affects his/her integration into society. He/she will further assess all types of dependency pursuant to § 14; (for the purposes of a parking permit, only the area of mobility and orientation is assessed), and will propose compensation in individual areas (pursuant to § 6 – 10).
Based on the conclusions of the medical and social assessment activities, the office will prepare a comprehensive assessment for the purposes of compensation, which is the basis for the decision on granting/refusing the application and on granting/refusing the financial allowance (§ 19). The entire procedure should not last more than 90 days. If you disagree with the decision, you can appeal it within 15 days from its delivery.
IMPORTANT INFORMATION 
Part of the decision-making activity is also determining the income and assets of a person with a disability, to which are added the income of jointly assessed persons (parents) living in a common household (e.g. in a family with one disabled child and a sibling, the average monthly income of the parents / 4 = income per person is added. At a certain income level for a disabled person, financial contributions for compensation will not be provided at all or will be provided in a lower amount. A comprehensive assessment may propose all forms of compensation requested by the client, but the decision may be negative due to high income. For various compensations, the law determines by how many times this amount may not exceed the subsistence minimum (hereinafter referred to as the subsistence minimum) in order for compensation to be provided. The difference will determine the percentage amount of the financial contribution for that compensation.
If the value of the property of a person with a disability (family) is higher than €50,000, financial contributions cannot be provided. This amount does not include the value of the real estate used for permanent residence, one personal motor vehicle and other property according to § 18, paragraph 3. If you do not agree with the decision, you can appeal against it within 15 days of its delivery. The sample appeals that we have prepared for you according to the current criteria (see below) can help you.
APPEAL
When communicating with authorities or institutions, it is important to follow the rules set out by law. Do not forget that you must request everything in writing. That is why we have attached sample documents for applications and appeals, formulated by a lawyer specializing in social security law, which you can download.
Deliver the written application in person or by registered mail (so that you can prove that you delivered your application). If you deliver the application in person, make a copy of the signed application, on which you will have confirmation of receipt of the application, indicating the date on which the application was received and the signature of the person who received the application.
In the decision, the institution must state under which provision (paragraph) and law it made the decision and must justify its decision. At the end of the decision there must be an “Instruction”, from which you will learn whether you can appeal against the decision and within what period you can file an appeal. If the Instruction is missing from the decision or is incorrect, you have the right to appeal within an extended period of three months from the date on which the decision was delivered to you.
An appeal against the decision is filed within 15 days from the date of delivery of the decision. The period begins to run on the day following delivery, e.g. if the legal representative received the decision on Thursday, the period begins to run on Friday. If the last (15th) day of the period falls on a Saturday, Sunday or holiday, the period ends on the next working day. The period is met if the appeal is demonstrably sent by post or handed over directly to the institution no later than the last day of the period.
