claim parental benefit

The new provisions of the Federal Parental Allowance and Parental Leave Act (Bundeselterngeld- und Elternzeitgesetz, BEEG) have been in effect since 01.07.2015. Parents whose children are born on or after this date can choose between the basic parental allowance (previous parental allowance) and the receipt of parental allowance plus. They can also combine both. Furthermore, a partnership bonus was introduced.

Basic parental allowance

The basic parental allowance is a family benefit for all parents who want to look after their child themselves for the first 14 months after the birth and are therefore not employed or not employed full time (max. 30 hours per week).

Both parents have a total of twelve monthly amounts at their disposal, which they can divide between themselves. If both parents apply for parental allowance and one of them has less income after the birth than before, parental allowance is paid for two additional months (partner months). Parental allowance must be claimed for at least two months and can be claimed for a maximum of twelve months.

ElterngeldPlus

ElterngeldPlus is a variant of Elterngeld, especially for parents who want to return to work earlier. It also offers the possibility of doubling the period of parental allowance. One month of basic parental allowance becomes two months of parental allowance plus. It is not mandatory to work part-time. ElterngeldPlus amounts to a maximum of half of the basic parental allowance and can be paid beyond the child's 14th month of life.

Partnership bonus

The partnership bonus is an additional benefit to the basic parental allowance and ElterngeldPlus. Here, four additional ElterngeldPlus months are granted for each parent if both parents work between 25 and 30 hours per week in four consecutive months.

On the website of the Federal Ministry for Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth, you can use the parental allowance calculator/parental allowance planner to determine the amount of parental allowance you will receive and to test out the various parental allowance models (see links).

Requirements

You can apply for parental allowance if

• has their place of residence or usual abode in Germany
• live in a household with their child and look after and bring up the child themselves
• does not work or does not work full time after the birth (max. 30 hours per week)
• had a taxable income of up to 250,000.00 Euros in the last completed assessment period (for parent couples, the limit is 500,000.00 Euros).

Parental allowance can be claimed by the following persons:

• Employees
• Self-employed persons
• civil servants
• Students
• Trainees
• Unemployed
• housewives or househusbands
• Adoptive parents
• relatives up to the third degree (exceptional cases)

Parental allowance can only be claimed for full months of the child's life.

A month of life lasts from the date of birth in one month to the day before the date of birth in the next month. If the child is born on the 15th of a month, the month of life ends on the 14th of the following month.

Notes on the calculation of parental allowance

The amount of parental allowance is based on the average monthly net income available to the parent in the 12 months before the birth. It replaces 65% or 67% of the monthly earned income that is lost after the birth of the child. There is a higher replacement rate for low earners. Entitled persons receive a minimum of 300.00 Euros and a maximum of 1,800.00 Euros.

Calculation of the adjusted net income:

• Wage tax, solidarity surcharge, church tax and compulsory social security contributions are deducted as a lump sum from the gross tax amount
• in addition, a lump-sum deduction of 83.33 Euro is made for the employee lump-sum allowance (1/12 of 1,000.00 Euro)
• other emoluments as well as tax-free income are not taken into account as income

Sibling bonus:

The sibling bonus is received in addition to the calculated parental allowance as long as an older sibling under the age of 3 or two children under the age of 6 live in the household. The bonus amounts to 10 % of the parental allowance, but at least 75.00 Euros. Please submit a copy of a current child benefit certificate (not older than 3 months). In the case of multiple births, the entitlement to parental allowance is per child. The parental allowance increases by 300.00 Euro for each additional multiple child.

Current regulations on the Covid 19 pandemic

If you have suffered a loss of income as a result of the Covid 19 pandemic (drawing an income replacement benefit such as unemployment benefit I or short-time working allowance), the months affected can be excluded from the calculation of parental allowance. As a result, the assessment period is shifted further into the past.

For this purpose, the annex "Application to change the assessment period for loss of income due to Covid 19 pandemic" must be completed (see Downloads).

Please contact us by telephone before submitting the application for parental allowance regarding the proof of income required for this.

Parental allowance must be applied for in writing. You can obtain the application for parental allowance from us or as a download (see links).

The application can only be submitted after the birth of the child. Retroactive payments are only granted for the last 3 months of life before the application is received.

• Application form with Annex 1 and, if applicable, Annex 2, 3
• Original birth certificate of the child "For submission to the parental allowance office
• Proof of income (see below)
• Original certificate of receipt of maternity benefit or refusal of maternity benefit from the health insurance fund
• Copy of earnings certificate with employer's allowance or employer's certificate for the application for parental allowance during the maternity protection period (see Downloads)
• Copy of confirmation of parental leave from employer
• if you work part-time during the period for which you receive parental allowance: employer's certificate (Annex 4)
• If applicable, copy of current child benefit certificate (not older than 3 months)
• Copy of residence permit, if applicable

Proof of income (copy):

• in case of employment: 12 certificates of earnings before birth/beginning of maternity period
• in case of self-employment: tax assessment from the previous year or tax assessment from the previous year + income statement (EÜR) from the previous year, forecast for the reference period (Annex 3)
• for self-employed and non-self-employed activity: all certificates of earnings from the previous year, tax assessment from the previous year or tax assessment from the previous year + income statement (EÜR) from the previous year, forecast for the reference period (Annex 3).
• Note: Exceptions possible (e.g. receipt of parental allowance for a previous child).

Please note:

• If you have any queries regarding your parental allowance or parental allowance application, or if you wish to submit documents to us (by post or e-mail), please ensure that you include the name and date of birth of your child (otherwise no allocation can be made).
• You will have to pay 0.50 euros per copied page for copies made at the parental allowance office.

• Federal Parental Allowance and Parental Leave Act (BEEG)