Care workers to get extra Covid bonus of up to €240

Healthcare workers in the Netherlands will be able to apply for a new Covid-19 bonus from June 15, the government announced. The bonus has a net value of between €200 and €240, and will be paid out at the end of this year.

The main condition for eligibility for the bonus is that the healthcare professional has "provided medical care under exceptional circumstances" in the period from October 1 last year to June 15 this year. The exact amount is expected to be known by mid-October after all applications have been assessed.

"Healthcare professionals have shown tremendous commitment to the fight against COVID-19 for more than a year. The government greatly appreciates this. To express this, € 720 million has been made available for bonuses to healthcare professionals for 2021," the government announced.

Many healthcare professionals have already received a healthcare bonus of a thousand euros net in 2020. This bonus applied to the period from March 1 to September  1, 2020. The bonus was widely requested by healthcare providers, resulting in an overrun of the available budget by € 800 million. An additional €720 million will therefore be divided over the total number of approved applications.

The conditions for the 2021 bonus scheme are largely the same as those of 2020.