Parents from the Bosniak, Serbian, and Roma communities in the north without Kosovo child benefits

For several months, parents from the Bosniak, Serbian, and Roma communities in northern Kosovo have not been receiving the Kosovo child benefit. Unclear requirements for additional verification have caused confusion and dissatisfaction. Although many parents submitted the required documents through social work centers and Kosovo Post, they have not received any response. An additional concern is that some parents have been instructed to register with the Kosovo Statistical Agency in Pristina, which raises questions about the legal basis for this decision and the potential political influence on the realization of social rights.

Ines Aljovic Mihajlovic, a mother of two children, explains that the problem with child benefit payments in Kosovo started in late August, when families from non-majority communities began receiving emails asking for additional verification of the profiles of mothers and children, with a note that extracts, vaccination records, and school attendance proof were required and should be submitted to social work centers. As she states, in November, emails were sent again, this time requesting that the same documentation be sent via Kosovo Post.

"I personally sent the documentation through Kosovo Post and received confirmation that I did so. However, I never received any response regarding whether my documentation was accepted or not, nor any explanation if it wasn't accepted. I must mention that a certain group of parents received a follow-up email asking them to confirm their place of residence at the relevant Statistical Agency in Pristina, with the instruction to include all family members," Aljovic said.

She adds that this has caused confusion in the community because there is no clear connection between these two institutions – the Ministry for Transfers and Labor and the relevant Statistical Agency – and how child benefits would be linked to the Statistical Agency.

"We tried to contact the relevant authorities in informal ways and request the decree or decision that led to this measure, which affects a large number of members of non-majority communities. However, we never received any official response," she emphasized.

Aljovic reminds that the right to child benefits is guaranteed by law for every person born in Kosovo, who also holds Kosovo citizenship, and that violating this law would be a violation of children's rights. Due to the current situation, parents have formed an informal association to exchange information and documentation that could help resolve the issue.

Aljovic further notes that, in an informal conversation with the relevant institutions, she was told that the additional verification for the non-majority community is necessary because the children from these communities are treated as children of the diaspora, which is why they are being directed to the Statistical Agency.

"I, as a mother of two children, see the solution to this problem in the fact that the competent authorities, or simply the decision-makers, in a very official and transparent manner, should provide the public with insight into the decision based on which this measure or decree was adopted, which affects many families," Aljovic said.

Marija Miskovic, a mother of three children, said that her child benefits were interrupted in August when she also received an email asking her to submit documentation to the social work center, which she did.

Miskovic confirmed that she was told at the Ministry in Pristina that her children's vaccination certificates and school attendance certificates were invalid because they were issued by "parallel institutions."

"In December, I went directly to the Ministry of Labor, Transfers, and Social Affairs in Pristina, where I was informed by the competent authorities that my documents were not valid. Specifically, the regular school attendance certificate and vaccination certificate are invalid because they were issued by parallel institutions, and the government will decide what to do with such cases. This was the official response, as when I received this information, I asked Mr. Zogaj, who told me that I can consider this the official response of the institution," she said.

In conversation with other parents facing the same issue, Miskovic learned that those who went to the Statistical Agency to register have resumed receiving child benefits, but their payments for the previous period have not been refunded, nor have they received an official explanation as to why they had to register.

As a mother, she expects the international community to get involved in resolving the issue and to recognize that this is a serious violation of children's rights because political decisions or other factors should not influence such decisions.

"As a mother, I expect this to be resolved soon, that there will be a refund, and that parents will not be asked to do something they shouldn't be doing, which is illegal. As a lawyer, I expect that the institutions responsible for implementing the decision to stop child benefits and the decision to force us all to register with the Statistical Agency will be adequately sanctioned because, as a lawyer, I know this was done without any decision, without any secondary legislation, just on the word of the government or some government representative," Miskovic said.

On the other hand, Valbona Rizvani, a mother of three children, says that this decision has greatly affected her family because these benefits were very important to them.

"It’s been four months since I have received the benefit. I haven't received anything. It is very hard because 100 euros is not a small amount for me and my children. They didn’t explain why I can’t receive it, they just told me to wait," Rizvani says.

Our portal also contacted the Municipality of North Mitrovica to request an official explanation of the decision or to access the decree related to the payment of child benefits. However, anonymous officials stated that no decree had arrived, that they had already contacted the relevant ministry regarding the matter, and that the problem was likely caused by the census conducted in 2024.

According to many citizens in four municipalities in northern Kosovo, census enumerators never visited their homes. Acting Director of the Kosovo Agency of Statistics Avni Kastrati stated at a press conference announcing the census results that for the municipalities with a Serbian majority in northern Kosovo, an estimate was made because the local population largely "boycotted the census process."