Hartz IV successor - this applies to the new citizen income from now on
Created: 1/11/2023 2:31 p.m
Since January 1, 2023, the new Citizens' Income Act has been in force in Germany.
© Bihlmayerfotografie/IMAGO
Who gets the new citizen money?
How is it calculated?
How and where can you apply for it?
What are the standard rates?
And when will it be paid out?
Worth knowing about the new citizens' income.
Munich – Since January 1, 2023, the new Citizens' Income Act has been in force in Germany.
Citizens' benefit is a basic security benefit for employable beneficiaries in Germany, which replaced unemployment benefit II (colloquially known as "Hartz IV").
It secures the livelihood of those who cannot cover their livelihood from their own income.
For example, when someone has lost their job or had to close their shop.
Or because regular employment is no longer possible due to other circumstances, for example due to a long or chronic illness.
The new regulations on citizen income will come into force in two stages, the first stage on January 1, 2023, the second on July 1, 2023. It is important to note that the requirements are no longer retrospectively adjusted to the rate of inflation, but rather in a forward-looking manner.
In addition to this, the latest available data on the price development relevant to standard requirements is taken into account.
The aim of the citizen's allowance is to be more unbureaucratic and digitally accessible with a simple application.
People who find it particularly difficult to find or take up work can be supported by professional coaching from July 1, 2023.
The new citizen money – who gets the citizen money?
Only people who are able to work and cannot cover their living expenses from their own income and other priority benefits (unemployment benefit, housing benefit, child allowance, etc.) are not sufficient receive citizen benefit.
The Citizen Benefits Act 2023 provides that the right to citizen benefits exists ...
... in case of need,
... with basic earning capacity,
… often following unemployment benefits
... if the local job center can be reached
People who are not able to work but need help and who live in the same household as people who are entitled to a citizen's allowance also receive the citizen's allowance.
Anyone who was previously entitled to unemployment benefit II or social benefit will also be entitled to citizen benefit in the future.
It is important that people who are already receiving benefits from the job center do not have to submit any new applications.
All approved benefits will remain valid into 2023.
The procedure for approving benefits also remains unchanged.
Applications for further approval must continue to be submitted as before.
The new citizen's income – how do you apply for the citizen's income?
The citizen's allowance application must be submitted to the municipal administration or the city administration of your own place of residence.
The job centers are responsible for this.
The application is the basic prerequisite for the payment of the citizen's income, because no citizen's income is paid without an application being submitted.
In principle, citizen income is only paid from the day the application is submitted, for example from the 1st of the month in which the application for citizen income was made.
The citizen's allowance application can initially be made informally, orally or in writing.
The application form, i.e. the questionnaire for the application, can then be filled out later.
Because the (informal) application is the prerequisite for the claim, you should be able to prove that the application was made and when in case of doubt - for example by a registered letter.
The official application forms for citizens' income can be downloaded from www.buerger-geld.org.
Citizens' allowance can also be easily applied for online, on the website of the Federal Employment Agency (www.arbeitsagentur.de).
First you have to register as a private person.
The application forms are then available online.
The new citizen's income - what evidence must be attached to the application?
Evidence of personal circumstances, especially income and assets, must be attached to the application for citizen's allowance.
The evidence can be submitted later, so it does not have to be sent to the job center together with the application.
However, a decision can only be made on the citizen's allowance application once all the evidence has been submitted.
It is therefore in the interest of the applicant to submit the evidence as early as possible.
The proof of the citizen's allowance application also refers to the family situation and the housing situation.
The following must be submitted to the job center:
application forms
Valid identification document: identity card or passport with registration certificate or (for foreign nationals) residence permit
Proof of income – such as a payslip or certificate of earnings.
However, current account statements are also sufficient, from which the payment of salary, pension, sickness benefit, child benefit, maintenance or other income can be seen.
Account statements for the past 3 months
Proof of assets (e.g. bank statements, savings accounts or other bank statements)
Evidence of current expenses - such as bank statements showing the payment of rent or insurance premiums or other payments
rental contract
Proof of heating and ancillary costs (the most recent heating and ancillary cost statement from the landlord)
Evidence of earlier receipt of benefits, also from another job center (= notification of approval)
If the citizen's allowance application is made following an employment relationship, the employment papers, letter of termination or termination agreement and a certificate of employment completed by the employer must be submitted.
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The new citizen's income - important figures, data & facts
The standard sets at a glance
Standard set, beneficiaries, standard requirement level
502 euros for a single person, standard need level 1
451 euros, for married or non-marital partners in a cohabitation, standard requirement level 2
402 euros, for people who have not yet reached the age of 25 (15 to 24 years) and are moving without a guarantee from the job center, standard requirement level 3
420 euros, for children aged 14 to 17 and for minors with adult partners, standard requirement level 4
348 euros, for children aged 6 to 13 years, standard requirement level 5
318 euros, for children up to and including 5 years of age, standard requirement level 6
The new citizens' income – the payment dates
Basically, the payment of the citizens’ allowance takes place on the last working day of the previous month.
The individual payment dates in 2023:
month, day of the week, date of transfer
January 2023: Wednesday 12/28/2022
February 2023: Tuesday 01/31/2023
March 2023: Tuesday 02/28/2023
April 2023: Friday 03/31/2023
May 2023: Friday 04/28/2023
June 2023: Wednesday, 05/31/2023
July 2023: Friday 06/30/2023
August 2023: Friday 07/28/2023
September 2023: Thursday 08/31/2023
October 2023: Friday 09/29/2023
November 2023: Tuesday 10/31/2023
December 2023: Thursday 11/30/2023
The new citizens' income – how is income and assets calculated?
When applying, the individual needs of the respective applicants are determined first.
This consists primarily of the respective standard requirement, the costs of accommodation and any additional requirements.
Any existing income and assets are compared to this requirement.
Before that, however, the respective allowances are deducted:
A flat rate of 100 euros is initially deducted from monthly income from employment.
Of the additional income, 20 percent will then be for the part between 100 and 520 euros, 20 percent for the part between 520 and 1,000 euros (30 percent from July 1, 2023) and another 10 percent for the part between 1,000 and 1,200 euros not counted towards the benefits.
For people who have at least one minor child, the last exemption level even applies up to an income of 1,500 euros.
There are also allowances for assets.
During the waiting period, i.e. the first year of benefit receipt, 40,000 euros are not taken into account for the first person in the benefit community.
For each additional person, 15,000 euros remain untouched.
After the waiting period has expired, the limit of 15,000 euros applies to each member of the benefit community.
The new basic income – benefits for children and young people
With the citizen’s income, children and young adults up to the age of 25 continue to receive these benefits from the education and participation package in addition to the standard rate – if the requirements are met:
one-day excursions from school or daycare
multi-day class trips from school or day-care center
Equipment with personal school supplies (in two batches: February 1st and August 1st of each year)
Transportation of students to school
Appropriate learning support (tutoring)
Communal lunch catering at school, day-care center or after-school care center
15 euros flat rate for actual participation in social and cultural life in the community (only up to the age of 18)
