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Parental Allowance Interview

25.02.2017 / 13.04.2017

Parental benefits consulting Dresden went to the family magazine Kind + Kegel for an interview Theme parental allowance available. Part 1 can be found here . Part 2 is here . Following this article you will find the unabridged and unedited interview.

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Felix Böhme for Parental allowance consulting Dresden

What are the basic requirements for the receipt of parental allowance?

In order to receive parental allowance, there are 5 prerequisites to fulfill: You must be domiciled or have his habitual residence in Germany, live with his child in the same household, Caring for and educating the child and no or no full employment (max Weekly hours). In addition, the taxable income 250,000, - EUR (for married 500,000, - EUR) do not exceed.

Are there any recent changes? What are the most important, what exactly changes and what benefits do you expect from them?

The last major change in the law concerns parents whose children were born on 01.07.2015. It was u.a. the so-called Elterngeld-Plus and the partnership bonus months introduced. Thus, the relation of the parental allowance can be made very individual. part time jobs was particularly encouraged compared to the previous regime. By the Partnership bonus months should especially the fathers in the care and education of the Child, because both parents have to be employed part-time. Most recently, it is more of the court decisions that "develop" the parental benefit right. Thus became only last december of the national social court Baden-Wuerttemberg in the sense of the parents decided. In this particular case, a mother received performance-related benefits in addition to her fixed base salary and regularly paid commissions. This has the parental benefit office first (by law) not taken into account when setting the parental allowance. This gave her less parental allowance as expected and went to court against the decision. Now it remains exciting, whether the Case before the federal social court goes. Even if there are individual cases, there are Hope to change this - in my view - partially unfair regulation. More detailed information and recommendations for action I give on my homepage www.einfach-elterngeld.de continue.

How do you split the 14 months best as a couple? And is there any possibility to extend the subscription period? In which constellations does that make sense?

Unfortunately, there is NOT the blanket answer here. Parental benefit statistics show that the majority of the claim the mothers take. Most of the fathers "only" the 2 so-called remain. Partner months at home. The standard case is that the mother has 12 basic salary months and the Father takes 2 months parent money months. Sometimes, the mothers extend their parental allowance with help Parental allowance plus for the first 18 or 22 months of life. When parents look for a professional advice at Elterngeldberatung Dresden is always trying to work with parents to find the best possible choice of the types of cover. This is basically the duty of Parental Allowance Officen, but often it is for time reasons or other causes of administration are not sufficient to fulfill this obligation comply. Here I do not see the problem with the employees of the Parental Allowance Officen, the In my experience, doing a very good job. Rather, the policy would have more here Provide staff. At the introduction of the Parental allowance plus was from the policy of an additional consultation requirement of 12 minutes per parental benefit case. I think so and many Elterngeldsachbearbeiter outlandish.] You can extend the reference through the partnership bonus months. For this, both parents must work together for 4 consecutive months of life in one Part-time corridor of on average at least 25 to max. Be employed 30 hours per week. Then both parents each receive 4 additional Parental allowance plus months. In the sum received They then at least 1.200, - EUR, or a maximum of 7,200, - EUR as state social benefits in addition to the part-time income. In my consulting activity, I found that due to the narrower conditions many parents do not "fear" the partnership bonus months. After a detailed explanation, then decide relatively many parents for the partnership bonus months. They are particularly useful when the mother after the Parental leave anyway meant to get back into work part-time and if one Part-time work is imaginable and possible for the father. Sometimes it fails "Elterngeld-Plan" if the employer has problems with the absence or part-time. Even if you as a worker have a statutory right to parental leave (including part-time work), it happens again and again that the workers (understandably) have a "quarrel" with the Want to avoid employers and sometimes completely (have to) do without parental leave. I can recommend the Fathers Network Hamburg to those affected (fathers). There you will find helpful Material on this problem¹.

Do I also get the full parental allowance as a single parent?

If you meet the requirements for wage tax bracket 2 (checks and certifies the responsible tax office), can single parents the basic claim of 14 basic salary months and even the partnership bonus of 4 others Claiming Parental Allowance Plus Months Alone.

What do I have to consider when working independently or as a freelancer?

Much. More than workers in any case. The assessment period (period before birth, which determines the amount of the parental allowance) is here usually not the problem, but the Design of the reference period (period after birth in which parental allowance is drawn). Here, the self-employed in my opinion have many more options for their Elterngeldbezug as they often rely on the inflow of operating income and the outflow of Operating expenses can influence. It gets more complicated when you look at wages and earnings gets in the assessment period, then even strikes the official parental money calculator of Federal Family Ministry and sometimes shows wrong results. My tips to the self-employed: First try the system of parenting money yourself understand. Either get it yourself or take a consultation in the Parental benefit agency or a professional parental benefit adviser. The sooner you start with it, the better. Because under certain circumstances, one can also influence the Take amount of parental allowance. And last but not least: Do not give yourself a blanket solution like "Mother 12 and 1 the father 2 months" satisfied. In the majority of cases one finds more individual and better purchasing options.

Can I also work while receiving parental allowance?

Yes, even up to 30 hours on a weekly average. However, every euro earned during the reference period reduces the parental allowance. There is no "inviolable" base amount that can be earned. In the worst case one slips into the minimum amount (300, - EUR with the basic reference, 150, - EUR with the Elterngeld-Plus). Who has been granted 1.800,- Basic Parental Allowance (= maximum amount) and then falls due to high income from work to the minimum amount, must expect substantial repayments.

Are there any tax traps or other disadvantages that can arise if you are not sufficiently informed?

In terms of income tax, you have to be aware of some things. For example, if one obtains taxable income above the basic allowance and, in addition, receives parental benefit over EUR 410 per year, must submit an income tax return. Basically, the parental allowance is income tax-free, but it is subject to the so-called Progressionsvorbehalt. This means that the parental allowance is indirectly taxed by a tax rate increase. In some cases this can lead to additional tax payments. As a rule, however, there are reduced taxable income during parental allowance payments, which is why such tax arrears, if they happen to move at a moderate altitude. For more information, please contact a tax adviser or the Financial Management Info-Hotline (0351-79997888).

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I run the parental allowance workshops, e.g. on the Babywelt-Messe Dresden on 18th and 19th March 2017. The workshop is similar to my free parental benefit info evenings (To find dates on my homepage www.einfach-elterngeld.de ). These information events are basically suitable for all parents who want to apply for parental allowance. In the lectures, I guide the audience practically through a consultation and show the system of parental leave. First, I explain what parental benefit is. In the next step, I explain how the parental benefit agency determines the amount of the parental allowance. Then I show on the basis of fictitious examples practical, how to choose his parental benefit. Following I am available for individual queries. Registration is usually not required. Information on participation can also be found on my homepage. In addition to the workshops, I offer other useful help for parents. On Youtube, for example, I go through the Saxon parental allowance application step by step and explain what you should register where. As of March 2017, my new website will most likely go online. In addition to a free (and comprehensive) parental allowance calculator, parents also have the option of to seek advice online using easy-to-use parental allowance software. At the end, the completed parental allowance and child allowance application will be made available as a printable PDF file. A look at my homepage is definitely worthwhile for expecting parents.

¹ www.väternetzwerk.info

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