The legal and judicial assistance project in a very important one. We advocate for the legitimacy of our beneficiaries rights and we want our beneficiaries to be aware of the rights they are entitled to. In Romania, all citizens who meet certain criteria may require certain benefits from the state. Among these we enlist below:
- social welfare
- state allowance for minors
- family support allowance
- emergency aid
- heating aid (during winter time)
- social canteen
- maternity leave and child support allowance
- disability pension
- social scholarship
- high school aid
- school books aid
- kindergarten vouchers etc.
We do not only assist our beneficiaries in accessing this benefits but also in drawing up the necessary papers for obtaining documents such as the ID and birth certificate. Our beneficiaries have to take some steps on their own as well. In this manner we empower and encourage them to become independent. However, many of our beneficiaries are illiterate and the whole process complicates and prolongs itself.
We assist our beneficiaries in several ways, such as:
- counselling – what are the steps they have to take and basically, what they have to do in order to receive certain rights;
- assistance in actually filling in the papers and forms (we write in their stead);
- payment of taxes at the City Hall;
- financial aid for the notary for people who want to claim social welfare (they have to declare that they have no revenues or income). In many cases, our beneficiaries need two witnesses to read and write in their place, if they are illiterate.
- requesting different papers from state institutions on their behalf;
- legal counselling in some cases (for alimony, cases of domestic violence etc.).