As of: February 8, 2024, 12:00 p.m
By: Carina Blumenroth
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Escape the stress of work and simply take some time off.
With the sabbatical you can recharge the batteries.
What you need to consider.
Travel the world and just press pause on your job for a moment – you can basically do that if you take a sabbatical.
Higher earners in particular are more likely to be able to afford this.
What you as an employee need to consider.
What exactly is a sabbatical?
During a sabbatical, employees take a break from their job: how this can be financed.
© Eskymaks/Panthermedia/Imago
A sabbatical or sabbatical year, as it is also known in German-speaking countries, is about breaking away from everyday life for a certain period of time.
Employees are then released from work.
This can be done for a period of one month to a whole year, for example, according to the career portal
Stepstone
.
Employees generally do not have a legal right to a sabbatical.
If this time off from work is an option for you, you must discuss the requirements with your employer.
Who is entitled to a sabbatical year?
Civil servants, public sector employees and teachers are entitled to a sabbatical year.
The special leave is regulated by law for a period of up to one year,
personio.de
informs .
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Financing models for sabbaticals
How and whether you can bridge the time off financially varies from person to person.
In principle, different models for the sabbatical are conceivable.
Among other things, the unpaid leave of absence of employees.
During this time, you will not receive a salary and you will also have to pay health insurance contributions out of your own pocket,
Deutschlandfunk Kultur
informs .
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Another model for the sabbatical would be the part-time model - you receive a part-time contract but work full time.
So you give up half of your salary and get it paid out during your time off.
The advantage, according to
Deutschlandfunk Kultur
: “You remain socially insured through your employer and can return to your job after your time off.”
However, you can also save for your sabbatical with a credit.
The
Techniker Krankenkasse
informs you that parts of your salary, one-off payments, overtime or vacation days can be saved there.
In this way, the sabbatical can be financed, you remain socially insured and then return to your job.
If you plan to take a break abroad after being laid off, you must note that you will not receive unemployment benefit during this time because you are not available for the job market, informs the health insurance company
AOK
.
When can a sabbatical be appropriate?
A break can have various reasons, for example you want to spend more time with your family.
Maybe you also want to fulfill a dream, get to know other cultures or do some volunteer work.
You can also use a sabbatical to reorient yourself professionally; the time out, for example, helps you to become clear about what you really want.
In this context, you can also complete internships or work elsewhere abroad.
Is there an alternative to a sabbatical?
It is difficult to take a long break outside of a sabbatical.
However, an opportunity to break away from everyday life for a short moment, learn new things or do something for your own health is educational leave.
In most federal states you have the right to claim five days a year for this.
Only in Bavaria and Saxony is there no legal entitlement.