You can receive benefits in accordance with SGB II if you are in need of assistance. This means that your income is generally taken into account and deducted from the requirements such as standard needs and accommodation costs. Assets reduce the entitlement to benefits under SGB II after a waiting period.
What is income?
As income (§ 11 SGB II), we generally take into account all income in cash, with a few exceptions stipulated by law (income not subject to offsetting and allowances to be granted). Income also includes non-cash benefits that you receive from your employer or as part of your federal or youth voluntary service. Examples of income are
- Income from gainful employment (self-employed or dependent)
- Maintenance payments
- Unemployment benefit I or sickness benefit
- Income from capital and interest
- Income from renting and leasing
- Child benefit, parental benefit or maternity benefit (only the employer's share)
- Pensions
Income that cannot be offset (i.e. we do not count this as income that reduces your entitlement to unemployment benefit II) can be, for example
- Basic pensions under the Federal Pension Act and comparable pensions or allowances under the Federal Compensation Act
- compensation for pain and suffering according to § 253 BGB
- the foreign deployment allowance for soldiers
- Maternity benefit from the health insurance fund
- see also § 11a SGB II and § 1 ALG II-VO
When we take your income into account, it always depends on the time of receipt. For example, if you do not receive your salary for the month of April until June, we will take this income into account in June. This also applies to income that you only receive once.
Income allowances
If you earn income from gainful employment, there are so-called allowances that we deduct from your income and do not take into account. This means that part of your income from gainful employment is not taken into account. The prerequisite for this is that after deducting your income to be offset, there is still a need for SGB II benefits.
Taxes, compulsory social security contributions and statutory insurance, the amount of which you have proven to us, are taken into account when determining your income to be offset. Necessary expenses that you incur in order to earn your income are also not taken into account.
Other allowances that we will take into account are
Earned income up to 100.00 euros per month
Completely exempt (basic allowance)
Earned income between 100.01 euros and 520.00 euros per month
Allowance of 20 percent
Earned income between 520.01 euros and 1000.00 euros per month
Allowance of 30 percent
Earned income between 1000.01 euros and 1200.00 euros per month
Allowance 10 percent (if there are underage children living in the community of need, the allowance can be increased further)
What is wealth?
Assets are not taken into account in the first year of benefit receipt, the so-called waiting period, unless they are substantial. Assets are considered substantial if they exceed 40,000 euros for the person entitled to benefits and 15,000 euros for each additional person in the benefit community. After expiry of the waiting period, we generally consider as assets all realizable assets that you already own before the benefit is granted.
As a rule, reasonable household effects, a reasonable home, a reasonable motor vehicle (worth up to EUR 15,000) and pension entitlements as well as rights in rem are not realizable (= protected).
Capital allowances
After a one-year waiting period, the following applies: The tax-free allowance for recipients of the Citizen's Income is 15,000 euros per person.