Rules governing a personal care budget (PCB)

The policy guidelines set out what you can and cannot pay for using your personal care budget. Some general rules are:

• You may only use the personal care budget for the support that we have approved for you. You will always receive a letter from us stating what that support entails. You must not use the personal care budget for any other support that we have not approved. Your personal care budget does not include any discretionary (unaccountable) amount.
• You may only pay the personal care budget to care providers known to us. If you change your care provider, you must notify us first.
• You must not use your personal care budget to pay someone who manages your personal care budget.
• You must not use the personal care budget for day-to-day support. By ‘day-to-day support’, we mean help for family members and housemates. For example, helping with cooking, washing up, vacuuming, getting children dressed and taking them to school. If someone is ill, it is normal for others to take over some of these tasks.

• Your personal care budget (pgb) is capped at the amount for which we can purchase the aid from our supplier. Would you like a more expensive aid? In that case, you will have to pay the difference yourself.
• You are purchasing an aid that is technically suitable for use for 7 years. Would you like to replace the aid sooner? Do you no longer need the aid? Or has the aid become unsuitable within 7 years? If so, please contact the Wmo helpdesk.
• You are the owner of the aid. This means you are responsible for maintenance and repairs where necessary. Have you purchased an electric mobility aid or a mobility aid with a motor? If so, you must also take out third-party liability insurance. You will receive a sum to cover maintenance and repairs, as well as the cost of the third-party liability insurance. This amount is available to you in our account. Are you incurring costs for maintenance or repairs? If so, please ask first how much this will cost. If the amount is less than 10% of the personal budget (pgb) you received from us for the purchase of the aid, you may have the maintenance or repair carried out. You submit the invoice to us and we will pay it. If the amount exceeds 10%, we will ask you to submit a quote first. If this quote is approved, the maintenance or repair can be carried out and we will pay the invoice. If the amount has been used up within 7 years and you still have invoices, you will need to pay these yourself.

A professional care worker may be employed by an organisation, or may be self-employed or a freelancer. These are the rules:

• We always reimburse up to 85% of the amounts we have agreed with our own service providers. You can enquire about these amounts at your local council. Would you like to agree on a higher amount with your care provider? That is possible. In that case, you will need to pay the difference yourself.
• You must not pay a fixed monthly wage. Payment for hours worked is made on a time-sheet basis. This makes it clear when your carer was present and for how many hours. We may request this information from you when verifying how the funds have been spent.
• If you purchase additional hours, you will have to pay for them yourself.
• You do not need to keep payroll records.

You must not pay your care worker’s travel expenses. Does your care worker charge for travel expenses? These are not paid separately. They are included in the hourly rate that you receive from us and that you pay to your care worker. If you still wish to pay travel expenses, you must pay these yourself.

An informal carer is someone from your immediate circle or a family member. We assume that an informal carer can provide care without receiving any payment. If an informal carer feels that the care is not being provided voluntarily or would like to be paid for it, we would be happy to discuss this with you. Here are a few general rules:

• You must pay your informal carer, aged 21 or over, at least the statutory minimum wage for ‘support’ and ‘domestic help’.
• You may pay no more than the hourly rate set out in the VVT Collective Labour Agreement. For care work, this is capped at the highest pay band in Table FWG 30. For domestic help, the ‘Domestic Help Salary’ table applies.
• In some situations, support from an informal carer is only possible if it is supplemented by professional support provided by the local authority.
• If your carer is under 21, they will receive a lower hourly rate: you must pay them the statutory minimum wage. The VVT collective agreement does not apply.
• You can claim for up to 36 hours per week to cover the costs of support for an informal carer. Does your informal carer have a paid job? If so, those hours will be deducted from the 36 hours.
• Hours worked are paid retrospectively, on an invoice basis
• Does your carer receive benefits and are they paid from your personal care budget (pgb)? If so, this is regarded as income. This may affect the amount of the benefit.
• Do you keep payroll records? The SVB can do this for you free of charge.

A short-term stay involves staying away from your own home to give your carer a break. If you stay at a professional care facility, you will pay a maximum of 85% of the amount we have agreed with our providers. If you are staying elsewhere, you will pay a maximum of €30 per 24 hours from your personal care budget (pgb) for a short-term stay. If support is also required, you will pay more. In some cases, you may also pay family members or neighbours. Please discuss the conditions with us.

Yes, but you may only do so if you consult us in advance. These are the conditions:

• You are going abroad for more than 6 weeks at a time. You need the same support there as you receive at home, and this support can be provided.
• You must notify the Wmo helpdesk in advance that you are going abroad.
• You may use your personal care budget abroad for up to 13 weeks a year.
• You use your personal care budget to purchase support. You are not permitted to purchase domestic help.

The end date is stated in our letter setting out the support you will receive. In some situations, your personal care budget (pgb) will end earlier:

• If you no longer meet the conditions.
• If you do not comply with the rules governing a personal care budget.
• If you use the personal care budget for anything other than what is stated in our decision. We check this regularly.
• If you yourself request that the personal care budget be stopped.
• If you request care in kind instead of a personal care budget.
• If you have been admitted to a care home or hospital for more than 2 months.
• If you are moving to another local authority area.
• If you no longer have a permanent address.

The SVB reimburses us for any amount remaining at the end of a calendar year.

• If you receive support, you become your care worker’s employer. You can:
  keep track of your own administration and finances.
• draw up a personal care budget (PCB) plan setting out how you wish to spend your PCB. You should also explain what the care provider will do to help you achieve the agreed outcomes, and within what timeframe you intend to achieve these outcomes;
• make arrangements with your care provider(s) about working towards the agreed outcomes;
• enter into a care agreement (employment contract) with your carer(s);
• manage your care provider(s);
• arranging for the care provider(s)’ invoices to be paid.

In the Guidance on assessing minimum PGB skills (PDF, 75 kB) sets out the knowledge and skills you need to be able to work with a personal care budget.