Child allowance

In Denmark you can receive different child allowances depending on your situation. Certain different conditions have to be met in order to receive a child allowance.

You can receive a child allowance if

• your child is resident in Denmark
• your child is unmarried
• your child has not been placed in a foster home or is otherwise a ward of the state
• you are resident in Denmark.

In addition, there are some conditions that will need to be met in terms of your situation:

In order to be entitled to receive the full benefit, you must have lived or worked in Denmark for at least 6 years in the last 10 years. This is called the ‘principle of qualification’. If you have received child allowance payments before 1 January 2018, and if you are still entitled to them, you will instead be subject to a qualification period of 2 years. This means that you must have lived or worked in Denmark for at least 2 years within the past 10 years.

Please note that child allowance is not the same as child and youth benefits or child support. You can read more about child and youth benefits and child support on this page.

Child allowance when one or both parents are deceased

Udbetaling Danmark will automatically pay a special child allowance if one or both of the child’s parents are deceased. If both parents are deceased, the child allowance will be paid to the person providing for the child.

If you live alone with your child, you can apply for child allowance. In order to qualify for that allowance, you must be a single parent. This means that you are not married or have left your spouse due to disagreements.

Child allowance for single parents consists of two benefits that you apply for at the same time:

• A child allowance that you can receive for each child under the age of 18 whom you support.
• An extra child allowance that you can receive as one payment for the children who live with you at your registered address.

You are a single parent if you as a parent (custodian) are actually single. That is, you are not in a cohabiting relationship, or otherwise living with another adult. It is Udbetaling Danmark that assesses and decides whether you can be described as a single parent/provider. The assessment is based, among other things, on whether you have common finances and a joint household with another adult, also called joint housekeeping.

It also means that you as a parent are not entitled to child allowance if you are married, as you, in that case, are not single. However, there are some exceptions to this, for example if one parent is in prison or if both parents receive a national pension.

You can be paid one child allowance per child that you support and one additional extra child allowance regardless of how many children are living with you. Both allowances are tax free.

You can get paid child allowance up to and including the quarter in which the child reaches the age of 18.

If you are getting child allowance as a single for one or more children and a new child moves to your address or you give birth to a child, you must send a new application for child allowance for the child.

In order to qualify for receiving child allowance for singles, you must be a single parent.

When deciding whether you are a single parent or cohabitating, Udbetaling Danmark must look at your life situation – for example whether you share your finances, household expenses, etc. with another adult.

You qualify for child allowance if:

• you are a single parent
• you are either unmarried, have left your spouse due to disagreements, your common-law partner or your spouse is in jail and has been so far at least three months
• you are a resident in Denmark
• your child is a resident in Denmark and lives with you
• you or your child are Danish citizens or you have been a resident of Denmark for at least one year
• your child has not been placed in a foster home or is not otherwise a ward of the state
• your child is unmarried.

If you are subject to a qualification period, i.e. you are earning the entitlement to full child allowance, then you can get the full allowance if you have worked or lived in Denmark for at least six of the past 10 years.

If you have received child allowance payments before 1 January 2018, and if you are still entitled to them, you will instead be subject to a qualification period of two years. This means that you must have lived or worked in Denmark for at least two years within the past 10 years.

How to apply

If you are a single parent:

• Apply for a child allowance for single parents - with MitID 

When you get child allowance for singles, you must declare your single status once per year. You will receive a letter from Udbetaling Danmark – Public Benefits Administration when you need to declare your single status.

When can I begin receiving the child allowance?

The first time you will receive the child allowance is in the quarter after you meet the conditions.

Udbetaling Danmark must have received your application by no later than the last day before a new quarter begins. If you send the application by regular post, please remember to take into account the time it takes for the letter to be delivered.

If you have joint custody

If you and the child’s other parent have joint custody, it is the parent with whom the child stays the most that can receive the child allowance.

If the child spends time between both parents equally, for example, via a 7/7 agreement, it is the parent that the child is registered as living with that can receive the child allowance even if the child spends equal time with either parent.

When you receive a child allowance, you have an obligation to notify of changes. This means that you must immediately let Udbetaling Danmark know if your situation changes and if the change impacts the child allowance that you are receiving.

• Inform Udbetaling Danmark of changes to family benefits
• Inform Udbetaling Danmark about moving if you receive family benefits (non-Danish eID)

Here are some examples of changes that you must notify of:

• You are no longer a single parent.
• You get married, even though you do not live with your spouse.
• Your child no longer lives with you.
• Your child begins spending more time with his/her other parent.
• You get work abroad or move abroad.
• Your child is adopted.
• Your child is to be living abroad for a longer period or gets a new registered address abroad.
• Your child is sent to a foster home or in some other way becomes a ward of the state.

If you do not notify Udbetaling Danmark when your situation changes, it may result in you having to pay back the money.

If you are getting child allowance as a single for one or more children and a new child moves to your address, you must send a new application for child allowance for the child that has moved in.

You will automatically be paid child allowance if your children are born on the same day, such as with twins or triplets. You will also automatically be paid child allowance if you have adopted twins, triplets, quadruplets, etc. You can get child allowance up to and including the quarter in which the children reach the age of 7.

You can get the allowance if

• your children live together
• you are a permanent resident of Denmark
• your children are residents in Denmark
• you or your children are Danish citizens or you have had a permanent address in Denmark for at least one year
• your children have not been placed in foster home or are not otherwise wards of the state
• you have lived or worked in Denmark for at least six years in the past 10 years.

If you have received child allowance payments before 1 January 2018, and if you are still entitled to them, you will instead be subject to a qualification period of two years. This means that you must have lived or worked in Denmark for at least two years within the past 10 years.

You can get an allowance of DKK 2,750 per quarter in 2025 for each child beyond the first child.

If, for example, you have twins, then you can get an allowance for one of the twins. If you have triplets, you can get the allowance for two of the triplets, etc.

The allowance is tax free.

You can get child allowance up to and including the quarter in which the children reach the age of seven.

When you receive a child allowance, you have an obligation to notify of changes. This means that you must immediately let Udbetaling Danmark – Public Benefits Administration know if your situation changes and the change impacts the child allowance that you are receiving.

• Inform Udbetaling Danmark of changes to family benefits

Here are some examples of changes that you must notify of:

• One or more of your children begins spending more time with his/her other parents.
• One or more of your children is to be living abroad for a longer period or gets a new registered address abroad.
• One or more of your children move out so that they are no longer living together.
• One or more of your children are sent to a foster home or otherwise become wards of the state.
• You get work abroad or move abroad.

If you do not notify Udbetaling Danmark – Public Benefits Administration when your situation changes, it may result in you having to pay back the money.

If you are an old-age pensioner, you can get child allowance if you have children under the age of 18.

You will automatically get child allowance if

• you and/or the child’s other parent are old-age pensioners or have been awarded a disability pension based on the rules that applied before 1 January 2003
• your child is resident in Denmark
• your child is under the age of 18
• you or your child are Danish citizens
• your child has not been placed in a foster home or is not otherwise a ward of the state
• your child is unmarried
• a child support payment cannot be determined for the child
• you have lived or worked in Denmark for at least six years in the past 10 years.

If you have received child allowance payments before 1 January 2018, and if you are still entitled to them, you will instead be subject to a qualification period of two years. This means that you must have lived or worked in Denmark for at least two years within the past 10 years.

If you believe that you qualify for an allowance but are not automatically receiving it, please contact Udbetaling Danmark by calling +45 70 12 80 62 or send an email via Digital Post to 'Familieydelser':

• Send an email via Digital Post to 'Familieydelser'

You will be paid one child allowance per child. The allowance is tax free.

You can get paid child allowance up to and including the quarter in which the child reaches the age of 18.

The size of the allowance also depends on your income. If your income exceeds the maximum amount that means you no longer get the pensioner credit, your child allowance will be reduced. The allowance is reduced by an amount equivalent to three per cent of the income that is in excess of the pensioner credit maximum income.

• Read more about maximums for pensioner credit under 'How much you will get'

If you are an old-age pensioner, you might qualify for getting child allowance if you are paying child support.

You can get the allowance if

• you are an old-age pensioner
• you are paying child support
• your child is resident in Denmark
• your child is under the age of 18
• you, your child or the child’s other parent are Danish citizens
• your child is unmarried
• you have lived or worked in Denmark for at least six years in the past 10 years.

If you have received child allowance payments before 1 January 2018, and if you are still entitled to them, you will instead be subject to a qualification period of two years. This means that you must have lived or worked in Denmark for at least two years within the past 10 years.

You can get the child allowance if the amount of child support that you pay has been determined by the Agency of Family Law. If you have a private agreement concerning child support payments, you will not qualify for receiving the allowance. 

• Apply for a child allowance as a pensioner paying child support – with MitID

Child allowances for pensioners paying child support amount to at most DKK 4,257 per quarter in 2025 and cannot exceed the amount you pay in child support.

You can get paid child allowance up to and including the day before the child reaches the age of 18. The allowance is tax free.

If you pay child support directly to the child’s other parent, you will be paid the allowance once per quarter. If you pay child support via Udbetaling Danmark, your allowance will be deducted from the child support payment, meaning that you will be paying less.

The first time you will receive the child allowance is in the quarter after you meet the conditions.

Udbetaling Danmark must have received your application by no later than the last day before a new quarter begins. If you send the application by regular post, please remember to take into account the time it takes for the letter to be delivered.

If you are a student, you can apply for child allowance for parents in education.

You can get the allowance if

• you are in the process of taking a state study grants (SU) entitled education or an education that will entitle you to be accepted into an unemployment insurance fund
• you, as a single parent, do not receive a provider supplement for your state study grants
• your child lives with you
• your child is resident in Denmark
• your child, you or the child’s other parent are Danish citizens
• your child has not been sent to a foster home or in some other way becomes a ward of the state
• your child is unmarried.

In order to be entitled to receive the full allowance, you must have lived or worked in Denmark for at least six years in the last 10 years. If you have received child allowance before 1 January 2018 and are still entitled to it, you must instead have lived or worked in Denmark for at least two years in the past 10 years to get the full allowance.

• Apply for a child allowance for parents taking an internship/traineeship or in education – with MitID  

In addition, the allowance depends on your personal circumstances:

When you are a single parent

If you are both studying, and for a period only one of you gets the state study grant (SU) with provider subsidies, you both have the opportunity to apply or the allowance. If you are both getting provider supplements with your state study grant (SU), you can only qualify for one allowance.

If you have questions about your particular situation, you are welcome to contact Udbetaling Danmark.

You can get an allowance of up to DKK 2,189 per quarter in 2025. 

Even if both you and the child’s other parent are studying, you can only receive one allowance. If you have two children, you can get two allowances if you are both studying and neither of you or only one of you receives the state study grant (SU) with a provider supplement. If you are both receiving state study grants (SU) with provider supplements and have two or more children, you qualify for one allowance.

The size of the allowance depends on your income and whether you are single or cohabiting. When the income exceeds a certain amount, your allowance will be reduced. If you live together with the child’s other parent or another adult, the size of the reduction will depend on your combined income.

Below you can see how by how much the allowance is reduced in relation to your income and personal circumstances:

If you are a parent and are in an internship/traineeship or will be starting one, you can apply for a supplemental child allowance instead of the child allowance for parents in education. When you apply, Udbetaling Danmark – Public Benefis Administration will automatically calculate which of the two child allowances you qualify for.

You can get the supplemental child allowance if

• you are in the midst of a schooling or internship/traineeship period with a salary/trainee benefit, and
• you are a single parent or cohabiting/married to someone who is also taking a state study grant entitled education or who receives education benefits from the municipality.

In addition

• your child must be living with you
• your child must be a resident of Denmark
• your child may not be placed in a foster home or otherwise be a ward of the state
• your child may not be married
• you have lived or worked in Denmark for at least six years in the past 10 years.

If you have received child allowance payments before 1 January 2018, and if you are still entitled to them, you will instead be subject to a qualification period of two years. This means that you must have lived or worked in Denmark for at least two years within the past 10 years.

• Apply for a child allowance for parents taking an internship/traineeship or in education – with MitID

The supplemental child allowance is calculated as 55 per cent of the different between the state study grant (SU) amount including provider supplements and your current income, such as, for example, salary from a traineeship/internship or other personal income.

You can be paid one allowance no matter how many children you have. If you are two parents both taking a traineeship/internship, you can get one allowance per parent.

Examples of how the allowance is calculated:

If you are single

If you are living with a common-law partner

The allowance is tax free.

You can apply for a special kind of child allowance if a paternity case is in progress or it has been determined by the Agency of Family Law or the courts that the child’s father is unknown. You can also apply if you have had a child via artificial impregnation using a donor.

Please note that child allowance in the event of an ongoing paternity case or if the father is unknown is not the same as child support or child allowance for singles.

You can get the allowance if

• the father’s identity cannot be established or if there is an ongoing paternity case being processed by the Agency of Family Law or the courts
• you have been artificially inseminated with the assistance of a donor
• your child is resident in Denmark
• you have lived or worked in Denmark for at least six years in the past 10 years.

If you have received child allowance payments before 1 January 2018, and if you are still entitled to them, you will instead be subject to a qualification period of two years. This means that you must have lived or worked in Denmark for at least two years within the past 10 years.

When you apply, you must attach documentation from the Agency of Family Law or the courts.

• Apply for a child allowance when the father is not identified – with MitID

• Apply for a child allowance when the father is not identified – with eID

The special child allowance is DKK 4,809 per quarter in 2025. The allowance is tax free.

You can get paid child allowance up to and including the quarter in which the child reaches the age of 18.

If the Agency of Family Law or the courts determine that there is a known father, you can no longer receive the special child allowance and there may be the risk that you have to pay back some or all of the child allowance.

Instead, it becomes the father’s obligation to assist with supporting your child - in some cases, also for the period in which you have received child allowance for a child with an unknown father.

If the paternity is determined as being either known or unknown, it is important that you notify Udbetaling Danmark – Public Benefits Administration of this.

• Inform Udbetaling Danmark of changes to family benefits

Udbetaling Danmark will automatically pay a special child allowance if one or both of the child’s parents are deceased. If both parents are deceased, the child allowance will be paid to the one providing for the child.

If you believe that you qualify for a child allowance but are not automatically receiving it, please contact Udbetaling Danmark, Family Benefits n by calling +45 70 12 80 62.

Please note that child allowance is not the same as child and youth benefits or child support.

Special rules

Special rules apply if you

• are an EU/EEA citizen, from Switzerland or a Danish citizen moving back to Denmark
• are to be posted abroad
• are a refugee or a foreigner from a country outside of the EU/EEA.

Information to those who have lost someone

There are many things to deal with when you have lost someone. You can get more information and answers to frequently asked questions here:

• For those of you who have lost someone (in Danish)

The child allowance is DKK 4,809 per quarter in 2025. If none of the parents are alive, two allowances are paid out.

The allowance is tax free.

You can get paid child allowance up to and including the quarter in which the child reaches the age of 18.

If you are single and have adopted a child, you can also receive a special kind of child allowance.

The allowance will automatically be paid out to you.

The special allowance is DKK 4,809 per quarter in 2025 and is tax free.

You will be paid the child allowance each quarter:

• 20 January
• 20 April
• 20 July
• 20 October

You can get paid child allowance up to and including the quarter in which the child reaches the age of 18.

If you do not automatically get paid the special child allowance but believe that you are entitled to it, please contact Udbetaling Danmark on +45 70 12 80 62 or send an email via Digital Post to 'Familieydelser':

• Send a mail via Digital Post to "Familieydelser"

If you have adopted a child, and you are not a single parent

If you have adopted a child and you are not a single parent you have to apply for an adoption grant:

• Apply for an adoption grant - with MitID

When you have children in Denmark, you may qualify for various grants for your children. These grants are called family benefits. Family benefits are administered by Udbetaling Danmark – Public Benefits Administration.

Here you can read a brief description of the various types of family benefits.

Child and youth benefits

Child and youth benefits, also known as the ‘child cheque’ (or family allowance) is a tax-free payment that you receive for each of your children until they reach the age of 18. The amount you receive depends on the age of your child, how long you have been earning the right to Danish family benefits, your income and the income of any spouse.

Child benefits are paid quarterly in advance. When your child reaches the age of 15, you will receive a youth benefit instead of a child benefit. Youth benefits are paid every month in arrears.

If the parents have joint custody, the Child and youth benefits are generally paid to both parents NemKonto with one half each.

Read more about child and youth benefits:

• Child and youth benefits

Child allowance

Child allowance is a payment paid in special circumstances if

• you are single
• you have twins – or triples, quadruplets, etc.
• you are a pensioner
• you are taking an education
• the father of your child is unknown
• one or both parents are dead
• you have adopted a child.

The size of the child allowance depends on your situation.

You can watch a short video here about when you are seen as single or cohabiting in relation to child allowance for single parents.

Child support

Child support is an amount that you can receive if you live together with your child but not together with your child’s other parent. The other parent is the one who must pay that amount to you.

Read more about child support:

• Child support

There are different rules for when you can receive family benefits.

Among other things, it depends on whether you are cohabiting with your child’s other parent, how many children you have, your income and how long you have lived or worked in Denmark.

If you live in another EU/EEA country or Switzerland with your family and work in Denmark

If you live in another EU/EEA country or Switzerland and work exclusively in Denmark, you will in general be covered by the Danish social security system. This means that you will have the right to family benefits from Denmark if you meet the other conditions listed above.

If the child's other parent works in the country where you live, you should receive family benefits in that country. If Danish family benefits are higher than the benefits in the country where you live, Denmark will pay the difference. If the Danish benefit is lower than in the country where you are living, you will not receive family benefits from Denmark.

If you live in Denmark and work in another EU/EEA country or Switzerland

If you live in Denmark and work exclusively in another EU/EEA country or Switzerland, you will in general be covered by the social security system in the country where you work. As a rule, this means that you have the right to family benefits from the country where you work. You should contact the authorities in the country where you work to ask them to advise you about the rules.

If the child's other parent works in Denmark, you should receive Danish family benefits. If family benefits from the country where you work are higher than the benefits in Denmark, the other country will pay the difference. If the benefit from the other country is lower than in Denmark, you will not receive family benefits form the other country.

If you live in Denmark and receive a pension from another EU/EEA country or Switzerland

If you live in Denmark and receive a pension from another EU/EEA country or Switzerland, and the child's other parent is not working in Denmark, you may be entitled to family benefits from Denmark on the basis of your residence. You must contact the authorities in the country you receive your pension as you should receive family benefits in that country. If Danish family benefits are higher than the benefits in the country where you receive your pension, Denmark will pay the difference. If the Danish benefit is lower than the country where you are receiving pension, you will not receive family benefits from Denmark.

If you move abroad

If you move abroad, you will no longer have the right to Danish child and youth benefit.

Read more about family benefits in EU countries:

• European Commission on Family Benefits

Udbetaling Danmark sends its letters in Danish

When you receive maternity benefits, you will receive letters from Udbetaling Danmark, e.g. about the amount you are being paid.

All letters sent from Udbetaling Danmark are in Danish. Therefore, it may be a good idea to have a friend or acquaintance translate the letters if you do not understand Danish. You are also always welcome to call Udbetaling Danmark if you have any questions.

If someone else is going to contact Udbetaling Danmark on your behalf, you first need to provide that person with a power of attorney. This also applies even if you are cohabiting and the other person just needs to speak to Udbetaling Danmark about the case.

If you are contacting Udbetaling Danmark on behalf of someone else, you first need to have a power of attorney.

For those of you who receive family benefits

Here you can digitally provide another person with a power of attorney to act on your behalf when contacting Udbetaling Danmark. For example, this might be to discuss your case, receive information about your case or to assume full responsibility for the case. You can provide a power of attorney for family benefits or for several other areas that Udbetaling Danmark deals with. The power of attorney does not provide access to digital self-service functions.

• Give or send power of attorney regarding family benefits

For those of you who will be helping someone else

If the person who wants to provide you with a power of attorney does not have MitID, you can use a written power of attorney. The form can be filled out on the screen or by hand, and it needs to be signed by the person giving you the power of attorney.

• Retrieve a power of attorney for family benefits (pdf – new window)

If you have a written letter of attorney from someone receiving family benefits, you can send the signed letter of attorney digitally. If you are using a mobile phone, you can take a picture of the letter of attorney and attach it. The power of attorney does not provide access to digital self-service functions.

• Give or send power of attorney regarding family benefits

You can also send the letter of attorney by post to Udbetaling Danmark, Kongens Vænge 8, 3400 Hillerød. Please note that it may take up to a week before Udbetaling Danmark receives the letter of attorney by post.

If you want to know more about powers of attorney for family benefits, you can read more on the Danish page on borger.dk:

• Power of attorney for family benefits (in Danish – new window)

If you have received more in family benefits than you are entitled to, for example because your situation has changed, you should first return this money to Udbetaling Danmark.

If you have to pay money back to Udbetaling Danmark, Family benefits, this may be for one of the following reasons:

• your and/or your spouse’s income has changed
• you have become single, got married or started cohabiting
• you are no longer entitled to receive family benefits from Denmark.

How to pay back money to Udbetaling Danmark

If you have received too much in family benefits, you will receive a letter from Udbetaling Danmark explaining what you have to pay back and why. If you have received this letter, you can pay the entire amount in one lump sum by transferring the money to Udbetaling Danmark’s bank account:

How to pay back child and youth benefits (child and youth benefits):

• Bank: Danske Bank
• SWIFT: DABADKKK
• IBAN no.: DK850216406171966
• Remember to state your civil registration number.

How to pay back your child allowance (child allowance):

• Bank: Danske Bank
• SWIFT: DABADKKK
• IBAN no.: DK2902164069171907
• Remember to state your civil registration number.

How to pay back child and youth benefits (child and youth benefits) if you are an EU/EEC citizen:

• Bank: Danske Bank
• SWIFT: DABADKKK
• IBAN no.: DK6502164069175236
• Remember to state your civil registration number.

In the chart below you can see the case processing time limits:

The case processing time limit period begins the same day Udbetaling Danmark receives your application. 

You can help ensure that your application is processed as soon as possible by:

• Attaching the required documentation
• Ensuring that your information in the Civil Registration System (CPR) is correct.

If you are not satisfied with how Udbetaling Danmark has dealt with your case, you are welcome to contact Udbetaling Danmark, Family benefits. Sometimes misunderstandings can occur and can easily be resolved with a verbal explanation.

If you disagree with a decision

You may file a complaint about a decision from Udbetaling Danmark if you disagree with it. A decision can for example be classified as the amount you receive in Family benefits – or any other decision that Udbetaling Denmark makes in your case. You will always receive a letter from Udbetaling Denmark, in which the decision will be stated along with a complaint guide.

Udbetaling Danmark must receive your complaint no later than four weeks after your receipt of the decision. They will then assess the matter again.

If Udbetaling Danmark reject your complaint, they will forward it to the National Social Appeals Board. The National Social Appeals Board is an independent state institution and the highest complaint board for Udbetaling Danmark amongst others.

Complaints about other matters

Udbetaling Danmark will also consider complaints received about other matters in your case and investigate whether there is anything that should have been done differently. You will always receive an answer to your complaint.

How to file a complaint

You can file a complaint by calling Udbetaling Danmark or fill in the form below.

• For complaints (in Danish)
• Make a complaint about family benefits (non-Danish eID)

• Lov om børnetilskud og forskudsvis udbetaling af børnebidrag (in Danish – new window)
• Databeskyttelsesforordningen (in Danish – new window)
• Databeskyttelsesloven (in Danish – new window)