Financial benefits: Family benefits from the state: Parents are entitled to this financial support | message
Maternity allowance
Pregnant women receive maternity allowance six weeks before and eight weeks after giving birth. The amount of the payment depends on whether the mother has statutory or private insurance. The maternity allowance paid by the health fund is a maximum of 13 euros per calendar day. If you earn an average of more than EUR 13 net a day, i.e. more than EUR 390 a month, your employer is legally obliged to pay the difference as a supplement to maternity benefit.
Child benefit
There is a fixed monthly child benefit for each child. You are generally entitled to child benefit from birth up to a maximum of 25 years of age, when you start studying or training. If no training or studies take place, child benefit is paid up to a maximum of 18 years of age. On July 1, 2019, child benefit for the first and second child rose to € 204, for the third child to € 210 and from the fourth child to € 235. Parents must submit an application to the family benefits office so that the fund pays out the amounts that are graduated according to the number of children.
Child allowances
Parents receive either child benefit or child allowances. The tax office automatically checks whether the child benefit or the allowances for children are more worthwhile for the parents. Settlement takes place with the tax return. As a rule of thumb, however, the following applies: For better-earning married couples, the tax exemptions are usually more advantageous from an annual income of 64,000 euros.
Parental allowance
Anyone who takes a career break because of the birth of the child is entitled to parental allowance. The benefit amounts to 65 to 100 percent of the lost net wage and amounts to a maximum of 1,800 euros and a minimum of 300 euros. Those who had a lower income before the birth receive a higher percentage. Parents who were not gainfully employed before the child was born also receive the minimum amount of 300 euros. The benefit is available for twelve and a maximum of 14 months if the other partner also takes a two-month break.
Parental AllowancePlus
Like parental allowance, ElterngeldPlus is also a support for parents who want to take a break from work for a while after the birth of their child in order to have more time for their child. The ElterngeldPlus is primarily aimed at parents who want to work part-time again soon after the birth, while they are still entitled to parental allowance. The ElterngeldPlus replaces 65 to 100 percent of the lost income – the less you have earned, the higher the percentage. With one difference to parental allowance: Parental allowance plus amounts to a maximum of half of the normal parental allowance that would be paid to parents without part-time income. But it is paid longer. Parental AllowancePlus is paid twice as long as the basic parental allowance, because in contrast to the parental allowance, the ElterngeldPlus can also be drawn beyond the 14th month of the child’s life.
Care costs
For every child up to the age of 14, parents can claim up to 6,000 euros for babysitting, childminder, daycare or after-school care. Two thirds of the expenses, i.e. a maximum of 4,000 euros, count as special expenses. In addition to costs for the placement of the child in a kindergarten, day-care center, day-care center, daycare center or with childminders, nannies, educators and nurses, expenses for supervising homework at home and all-day care at school are also recognized.
Finanzen.net editors
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