As an informal caregiver, you are legally entitled to 2-3 leave days during the months that you are paid informal care allowance.
During your leave, the care receiver will be taken care of by, for example, a substitute carer. The substitute carer can be a family member, relative or other close person of the care receiver.
Care during your leave days can also be arranged as short-term care in the city's own or a city-approved private service home with a service voucher, in the form of day activities, or as a service at home with a service voucher. The care provided during your leave days by a party other than a substitute carer is subject to a charge.
Make the leave arrangements with your designated worker. We will finalise the decision on arranging care during your statutory leave.
Options for implementing statutory leaves
As an informal caregiver, it is up to you to propose a substitute carer for yourself. The substitute carer will provide care either at the home of the care receiver or at the home of the substitute carer. The substitute carer can be a family member, relative or other trusted person of the care receiver. We will assess whether the substitute carer is suitable for the task.
The substitute carer has the same rights as the actual caregiver. The substitute carer also has the same responsibilities as the actual caregiver.
We will conclude a written agreement with the substitute carer.
If you want to utilise substitute care during your leave days, please contact your designated worker.
Short-term care means that the care receiver spends the informal caregiver’s leave days either in a city-owned or private service home. Short-term care can also be part-time, meaning that it can last for either a day or a night.
Short-term care is subject to a charge.
You can also receive a service voucher for short-term care. In this case, you will choose a suitable private service home from the list of service providers approved by the city. The service provider will invoice you for the co-payment. Explore providers of service voucher services in the palse.fi service (in Finnish or Swedish) under the heading ‘Helsingin sosiaali- ja terveystoimi -> Ikääntyneiden omaishoidon tuen lyhytaikainen ympärivuorokautinen hoito hoitoyksikössä’.
Go to palse.fi(Link leads to external service)
Agree on short-term care with your designated worker.
If you wish to arrange your leave as a service at home, you will receive a service voucher for that purpose. In the case of service at home, one day of statutory leave is 12 hours. If you have three statutory leave days per month, you have 36 hours of service available to you per month. If you have two leave days, you have 24 hours of service per month. You can use these hours by allotting them in times suitable for yourself.
You will conclude an agreement with a service provider approved by the City of Helsinki. The service provider will invoice you for the co-payment whenever 12 hours have been used.
Explore providers of service voucher services in the palse.fi service (in Finnish or Swedish) under the heading ‘Helsingin sosiaali- ja terveystoimi -> Ikääntyneiden yli 65-vuotiaiden omaishoidon tuen kotiin annettava hoito’.