Four in ten surviving relatives receive Anw benefit

Nearly 40 percent of people younger than 65 years claim the special benefit for surviving relatives (Algemene Nabestaandenwet or Anw) within one year of their partner’s death. Most Anw benefits are claimed by women aged 55 years and older, and by people with underage children. At the end of 2009, 107 thousand people in the Netherlands were claiming Anw benefit.

Mainly women aged over 55 

Surviving partners aged between 35 and 45 years and between 55 and 65 years are most likely to receive Anw benefit. The peaks in these two age groups are related to the entitlement criteria for the benefit. The age group 35 to 44 years comprises many people with underage children, one of the conditions for an ANW benefit. In addition, everyone born before 1 January 1950 is automatically entitled to Anw. At the moment just over half of new benefits are claimed by people in this group. These are mostly women aged between 55 and 65 years. 

Surviving relatives who claim Anw within one year of partner’s death, by age and sex

Widows with children more likely to claim benefit

Single mothers are more likely to claim Anw benefit than single fathers. More than 80 percent of all widows with underage children claim Anw, while for widowers with children this is only 30 percent. The difference between men and women is also observed in other family types. It indicates that more widowed men have an income that is higher than the maximum that would entitle them to claim Anw.

Surviving relatives who claim Anw within one year of partner’s death, by type of household

Katja Chkalova