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Immervoll, Herwig
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Immervoll, Herwig
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Immervoll, Herwig
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Publication
No claim, no pain - measuring the non-take-up of social assistance using register data
2009-12, Bargain, Olivier, Immervoll, Herwig, Viitamäki, Heikki
The main objectives of social assistance bene…fits, including poverty alleviation and labor-market or social reintegration, can be seriously compromised if support is difficult to access.
While recent studies point to high non-take-up rates, existing evidence does not make full use
of the information recorded by benefi…t agencies. Most studies have to rely on interview-based
data, with misreporting and measurement errors affecting the variables needed to establish
both bene…fit receipt and benefi…t entitlement. In this paper, we exploit a unique combination
of Finnish administrative data and eligibility simulations based on the tax-benefi…t calculator
of the Finnish authorities, carefully investigating the measurement issues that remain. We
…nd rates of non-take-up that are both substantial and robust: 40% to 50% of those eligible
do not claim. Using repeated cross-section estimations for years 1996-2003, we identify a set
of stable determinants of claiming behavior and suggest that changes in behavior could drive
the observed downward trend in take-up rates during the post-recession period. We discuss
the poverty implications of our results.
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Publication
How tight are safety-nets in Nordic countries? : evidence from Finnish register data
2007-08, Bargain, Olivier, Immervoll, Herwig, Viitamäki, Heikki
The non take-up of social assistance benefits due to claim costs may seriously limit the anti-poverty effect of these programs. Yet, available evidence is fragmented and mostly relies on interview-based data, potentially biased by misreporting and measurement errors on both bene…t entitlement and income levels used to assess eligibility. In this paper, we use Finnish administrative data to compare
eligibility and actual receipt of social assistance by working-age families during the post-recession period (1996-2003). Possible errors due to time-period issues and discretionary measures by local agencies are carefully investigated. Non take-up is found to be substantial (between 40% and 50%) and increasing during the period. Using repeated cross-section estimations, we identify a set of
stable determinants of claiming behavior and suggest that the increasing trend is mainly due to a composition effect, i.e. a decline in the proportion of groups with higher claiming propensity. We…finally discuss the targeting efficiency of the social assistance scheme.