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The back-to-school allowance, of which nearly 3 million families benefit, is intended to help parents withstand school-related expenses. It has been paid every year since 1974 to the less fortunate households. Here are all the elements to know if you can claim it.
How much is the ARS?
For the autumn of 2019, this allowance will amount to 368.84 euros for a child aged 6 to 10 years, 389.19 euros for a child from 11 to 14 years and 402.67 euros for a child from 15 to 18 years old. These amounts are increased by approximately 2 euros in Mayotte. The amount has been revalued by approximately 0.3% compared to 2018.
At the national level, the overall envelope devoted to the ARS reached 2.031 billion euros in 2018, or 0.9% more than in 2017. In Reunion, where the new school year took place on Friday, and Mayotte, where it takes place on Wednesday, is earlier than in mainland France and other overseas departments, the allowance was paid from August 1.
Who can benefit ?
Aimed at low-income parents, the ARS will be given to 3 million families whose children, aged 6 to 18, are enrolled in public or private schools.
The ARS is subject to a ceiling of resources, at 24,697 euros for families with a dependent child, 30,396 euros for families with two children and 36,095 euros for families with three children. The ceiling then increases by 5,699 euros for each additional dependent child. A specific resource ceiling is applied in Mayotte.
"When the resources of the family slightly exceed the ceiling, it benefits from a back-to-school allowance at a reduced rate, decreasing according to its income," according to the Ministry of Solidarity and Health.
How to benefit?
For pupils under 16 years of age, parents have no way of doing things, as the Family Allowance Funds (CAF) automatically pay the ARS to eligible families who already meet the conditions.
For children entering CP this year but who will be 6 years old in 2020, the family must collect a school certificate from the school and send it to CAF. As for parents of adolescents aged 16 to 18, they are not obliged to provide proof of schooling: "a simple declaration on their honor" is sufficient, according to the ministry.
The cost of returning to school is stagnating this year, according to a survey by the Confederation of Family Trade Unions (CSF), which estimates that CP and high school are cheaper but college more expensive than in 2018.