Elterngeld in Germany

1. Quick comparison of the three options

Elterngeld is not one payment. It is three related options that you combine, and the combination is the actual decision. Most parents mix them rather than picking one.

2. Basiselterngeld

Basiselterngeld is the original form and the one people mean when they say "Elterngeld" without qualification. It replaces a share of the net income you lose by looking after the child.

The principle is income replacement, not a flat grant. The more you earned before the birth, the more you receive, between a floor and a ceiling. Because it is a replacement, a parent who had no income before the birth still receives the minimum: students, people between jobs and parents who were not working all qualify for the floor amount.

3. How long Basiselterngeld runs, and what a Lebensmonat is

A couple divides 14 life months of Basiselterngeld between them. One parent alone can generally take up to 12 of those; the remaining months require the other parent to take some, which is the mechanism behind what people call the "partner months". Under current rules the entitlement can extend through the child’s 14th life month where the conditions are met.

The word "month" here does not mean a calendar month, and this trips people up constantly, including when they plan their return to work.

4. Can both parents take Basiselterngeld at the same time?

Only to a very limited extent, and this rule changed. For births from 1 April 2024 both parents can generally draw Basiselterngeld simultaneously for one month only, and only within the first 12 life months.

Older guides, including plenty still online, describe a considerably more generous arrangement in which couples could overlap for several months. That no longer applies to current births. If you are reading advice written before April 2024, assume this section is out of date in it.

There are exceptions, including for multiple births and for babies born prematurely who need care, so a household in one of those situations should ask the Elterngeld office rather than assuming the one-month limit is absolute.

5. ElterngeldPlus, and why "half of Basiselterngeld" is not the whole story

ElterngeldPlus pays less per month than Basiselterngeld but for roughly twice as long. One Basiselterngeld month can be converted into two ElterngeldPlus months.

The common shorthand is that ElterngeldPlus is half of Basiselterngeld. That is a reasonable description of the ceiling, and a misleading description of the benefit, because it describes the wrong comparison.

The cap on ElterngeldPlus is half of what your Basiselterngeld would have been if you had no income at all after the birth. If you do work part-time after the birth, your Basiselterngeld would have been reduced by that income, sometimes heavily. ElterngeldPlus is not reduced in the same way against that halved cap. The result is that for a parent working part-time, ElterngeldPlus can pay more in total than taking Basiselterngeld over the same period, not less.

That is the actual reason it exists. It is designed for the parent who wants to work some hours rather than none.

6. Partnerschaftsbonus

The Partnerschaftsbonus adds extra ElterngeldPlus months for parents who both reduce their hours to a middle band at the same time. It is aimed at households where both parents work part-time and share the care, rather than one working full-time and the other not at all.

Each parent can take 2, 3 or 4 additional consecutive ElterngeldPlus months. Both have to take them at the same time, and both have to be inside the working-hours band in each of those months.

The band is what catches people. It has a floor as well as a ceiling: dropping below the minimum hours breaks the bonus just as surely as exceeding the maximum. A parent who takes those months off entirely does not qualify.

A single parent can use the bonus alone, working within the same hours band, since there is no second parent to coordinate with.

7. Working while receiving Elterngeld

You may work while receiving Elterngeld, up to a weekly limit. Above the limit the entitlement ends for that month, so the limit is not a guideline.

The hours are averaged over the life month rather than measured week by week, which gives some flexibility, but the average has to hold. Self-employment counts, and so does work for a foreign employer.

Income you earn after the birth reduces Basiselterngeld, because Basiselterngeld replaces income that falls away, and income that has not fallen away is not replaced. This is precisely where ElterngeldPlus becomes the better instrument.

8. The income limit

Above a set level of taxable annual income there is no Elterngeld at all. The limit applies to couples, single parents and separated parents alike.

The critical detail is what the limit is measured against. It is taxable income, zu versteuerndes Einkommen, which is what remains after allowances and deductible expenses have been taken off. It is not gross salary, and it is not the figure at the top of your payslip.

The practical consequence is that a household with a gross income above the threshold can still be below it once the calculation is done, and should not rule itself out on the strength of the gross figure.

9. How Elterngeld is calculated

The calculation takes your income before the birth, works out a monthly net figure for Elterngeld purposes, applies the replacement percentage, and then deducts the effect of any income you earn after the birth.

The pre-birth income comes from an assessment period, the Bemessungszeitraum. For employees this is normally the twelve months before the birth, though certain months can be excluded on request, for example months affected by pregnancy-related illness or by maternity protection for an earlier child. Excluding a low month can raise your payment, and it is not always applied automatically.

The net figure used is not the net on your payslip. Elterngeld uses a standardised calculation with fixed deduction assumptions, which is why the result rarely matches your bank statements exactly. This is the "Elterngeld-Netto".

We deliberately do not reproduce the official calculation here. It has too many individual variables to model honestly in an article, and an approximation that is wrong by 200 € a month is worse than no number at all.

• Employees: normally the twelve calendar months before the birth
• Self-employed: normally the last completed business year, assessed on profit
• Mixed income: usually assessed on the self-employed basis, which can change the outcome substantially
• Excludable months: pregnancy-related illness, maternity protection periods, earlier Elterngeld months, and military or civil service periods
• Post-birth income: reduces Basiselterngeld; treated differently under ElterngeldPlus

10. When to apply

You apply after the birth, not before, because the application needs the birth certificate. What you can do before the birth is prepare: gather payslips, decide provisionally how you want to split the months, and find your regional Elterngeld office.

Elterngeld is backdated by a strictly limited number of life months. Months earlier than that window are lost outright and cannot be recovered by explaining that you were busy with a newborn. This is the single most expensive avoidable mistake on this page.

Apply as soon as you have the birth certificate. You can change the distribution of months later within limits, but you cannot recover months that fell outside the backdating window.

1. 1

   Before the birth: gather the income evidence

   Payslips for the assessment period, or your last tax assessment if you are self-employed. Note any months you may want excluded, such as periods of pregnancy-related illness.

2. 2

   Register the birth and get the certificate

   Ask the registrar for the certified copy issued specifically for benefit applications, and get spare copies while you are there.

3. 3

   Decide a provisional split of months

   Model it in the official calculator first. You are choosing between higher monthly amounts and a longer period, and whether either parent will work part-time.

   Official Elterngeld calculator and planner (opens in a new tab)
4. 4

   Submit the application to your regional office

   Both parents sign, even where only one is claiming months. Many federal states accept the application through the federal online service.

   Elterngeld Digital — online application (opens in a new tab)
5. 5

   Confirm reduced hours with your employer in writing

   If you plan to work during Elterngeld months, or to use the Partnerschaftsbonus, the office may want evidence of your contracted hours.

6. 6

   Check the decision against your plan

   The Bescheid states which life months are granted to whom and at what rate. Errors here are much easier to correct on receipt than after payments have run.

11. Elterngeld is not Elternzeit

These two are constantly confused, including by employers, and the confusion causes real problems: parents assume that applying for one secures the other, and it does not.

Elterngeld is money. Elternzeit is time off with your job protected. They are governed by different rules, granted by different parties, and have to be arranged separately. You can take Elternzeit without receiving Elterngeld, and the periods you choose for each do not have to line up.