Educational cards worth 500 lei and which benefit disadvantaged students from primary, secondary and preschool classes have started to be loaded, writes edupedu.ro. The first amounts were transferred to parents from Dâmbovița, Sălaj, Botoșani, Sibiu, Neamț, Iaşi, Bacău and Vrancea counties.
Educational vouchers for students are worth 500 lei. Source: archive
The Minister of Investments and European Projects, Adrian Câciu, announced that from November 18, over 650 thousand preschoolers and disadvantaged students will receive educational vouchers worth 500 lei on their cards. “Starting on November 18, 2024, more than 325 million lei will be transferred to the educational cards for preschoolers and students who need this support. These vouchers are intended to reduce the risk of school dropout and improve access to education and social services for disadvantaged children,” the official sent a few days ago.
Through the Inclusion and Social Dignity program 2021-2027, 120 million euros are allocated for disadvantaged children in preschool, primary and secondary state education, the Ministry of Education reports.
Educational institutions are obliged to inform parents about the eligibility conditions for granting social vouchers. Requests for the granting of this financial aid are submitted to the educational unit within 45 days of the start of the courses of the current school year and within 25 days of the start of the courses of the school years related to the period 2024-2027.
What are educational vouchers used for?
Educational cards must be used exclusively for the purchase of supplies and clothing items necessary for attending school and kindergarten, according to GEO no. 83/2023. Parents should know that these cards do not allow cash withdrawal operations, nor the exchange of the 500 lei in cash. Also, the cards can only be used on the territory of Romania and only in the affiliated units. Another essential aspect that must be known: the rest of the money cannot be issued in cash, at the units where the supplies or clothing items needed to attend school and kindergarten are purchased.
The social voucher on electronic support for educational support has a validity period of one year from the date of issue, without understanding that this is the validity period of the electronic support. The financial support of 500 lei is granted only once for an entire school year, in a single installment. Depending on the evolution of the family’s income, those who are entitled to this support measure will collect the amounts due on the electronic vouchers issued this year.
