Many know the feeling of having to turn over every penny twice. For a rough estimate of when the line to poverty is crossed, there are various calculations.
Being short of cash is a feeling that many people in Germany are familiar with. The increased prices exacerbate the problems for many of those affected – if income does not rise accordingly at the same time. At what point is one actually considered "poor" in this country? Who falls under this term is not uniformly defined, as the portal stuttgarter-zeitung.de reports. However, the official statistics at least give an impression of the income levels above which one is considered to be "at risk of poverty".
Below what net income is one considered "poor"?
Being short of cash, many people know this feeling. (Symbolic image) © Bihlmayerfotografie/Imago
According to the report, the Federal Statistical Office provided the latest figures for 2021. "According to this, the threshold for a person living alone was 1,148 euros net per month, counting salaries and social benefits," the portal said. Depending on the federal state, there are certain differences – "in Baden-Württemberg, for example, the at-risk-of-poverty line is 1,220 euros, which is around 200 euros higher than in Thuringia".
"However, there are different methods for the exact calculation of income limits," the report also states for classification. Even within the microcensus, an annual survey of households from all over Germany, there are different surveys on income. For households with several people (e.g. with several incomes or, for example, when receiving child benefit), a "household net income" is assumed.
Threshold for the relative risk of poverty in Germany in 2021
At the EU level, a different method is used "to be able to compare the member states with each other," according to the aforementioned report in the Stuttgarter Zeitung (as of February 10). "Here, the threshold for the relative risk of poverty for Germany in 2021 is 1,251 euros net per month for a person living alone."
But, according to the general note in the article: In general, there is no definition of poverty, the income limits are "at best a rough estimate".
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Many people with low incomes are entitled to housing benefit. Affected families can also apply for child allowance – the maximum amount of the allowance for low-income families has risen to 1 euros as of 250 January.
