There’s a movement in Finland that may soon approve a basic income for all citizens . The Finnish Social Insurance Institution (Kela) would pay everyone regardless of income level Є800 (around $876) a month free of any government charge . That means that each citizen would be given that monthly payment even if they weren’t working, or if they were already in another job. Any additional income earned would be taxed.

Doing this would replace other benefits people receive under the country’s social welfare system. A proposal for this basic income will be prepared by November 2016. If it works, Finland would become the first country to offer a universal basic income. Finland’s prime minister is in favor of the idea because it would simplify the country’s social security system.

Critics say the plan is “unrealistic.” In an editorial for Bloomberg View, Leonid Bershidsky provides one big practical reason: the cost. Around Є52 billion per year exceeds the Є49 billion in revenue the government projects for next year, Bershidsky points out, as well as that “Finland has one of the European Union’s shakier economies. It has been in recession almost continually since mid-2012 and lacks growth opportunities.”

In spite of its uncertain economic prospects, Finland already shells out a lot of cash and benefits to its citizens, as many social democracies do. High taxes fund health care and enable universities to be tuition-free, which is just one reason why implementing a plan like this might not work in the U.S.

For example, Fast Company recently reported on the staggering differences between the Nordic country’s paid parental leave and support packages for new parents.

Nine months of paid leave is granted to new parents of either gender in Finland, and their job is secure. Not everyone takes advantage of the full benefits.

According to Kela, the average total amount of paternity leave benefits accumulated by new Finnish dads is 33 days and Є2,800 ($3,143). For maternity leave, new Finnish moms took an average of 257 days and Є15,300 ($17,176). Kela also pays a tax-free, monthly “child benefit” for each child up to age 17. The benefit starts at Є95 ($106) per month for a first child and goes up gradually for each additional child. For a third child, for instance, the benefit is another Є135 ($151) per month.

As we’ve reported, in the U.S., there is no federally mandated paid parental leave. The current Family and Medical Leave Act only guarantees up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave with the existing job held for the employee’s return. The policy has been supplemented in individual states, but the U.S. is still one of only three countries among 185 not to offer public policies for paid leave.