Nursing costs: Do children have to pay for the care of the parents?

If the strength disappears in old age or that age -related diseases such as dementia no longer allow independent life, a nursing place must be found – either with an outpatient nursing service or in an inpatient nursing home.

But the nursing costs can quickly go into thousands every month. According to a study by the Association of Replacements EV (VDEK), the own contribution of a well -kept person in inpatient care was an average of 2248 euros a month in July 2022. Even those who have saved a lot in life or get a stately pension quickly sees in the situation that he or she cannot manage these costs in the long run. Do the children have to pay for parent support in such a case? An overview.

Basically, if you have to be cared for, you must first pay for it yourself, explains Silke Lachenmaier, consultant in the Health and Care of the Rhineland-Palatinate Consumer Center. “Before looking at the children, it is important to check which means the parents have to use,” explains Lachenmaier in an interview with the star.

Some costs can be covered by statutory long -term care insurance, but in most cases the monthly costs exceed the grants of the insurance companies. Accordingly, many people in need of care have to pay the open amounts “on their own pocket”. To do this, the monthly income is first used. These are usually the pension payments and any additional income, for example from rentals or the like. If these amounts are not sufficient, additional costs must be covered from their assets.

Already here Lachenmaier clears up with a misunderstanding: “It is a misconception that you have to consume everything.” Persons in need of care are entitled to a so -called gentle assets of 5000 euros. This should not be touched under any circumstances, Lachenmaier warns – not even to extend costs: “If the spare assets are used up, the social welfare institution does not fill it up again.”

Apart from the accommodation, people in need of care have to use their entire assets to pay for care costs. This also includes houses or apartments. If a single person in need of care has to move from their own property to a nursing home and this property are empty, it must be sold, explains Lachenmaier: “This is usable assets that must also be used for the care costs.”

In theory, it is also possible to rent the property, according to the consultant at the Rhineland-Palatinate Consumer Center. But this is only permitted if the rental income covers the outstanding nursing costs. With the current nursing costs between 2000 and 3000 euros per month, this is very rarely the case, says Lachenmaier.

A large fortune or a property that can be sold and can be used for care costs are of course not the normal case. So who has to pay for the costs if the assets of a person in need of care is used up? Basically, the following applies here: If a person in need of care is unable to pay their care costs, there are two possible parties that can step in: their own children or the social welfare office.

Understandably, many children are afraid of having to pay for the care costs of the parents and impoverished themselves. However, this fear is unfounded, explains Lachenmaier: “For children of those in need of care, the situation has been relaxed by the relatives’ relief law since 2020. They are only obliged to maintain if their annual gross income is over 100,000 euros.” There are no exceptions to this rule. The fortune of the children is also completely irrelevant in such a case, explains Lachenmaier: “If it is only paid to the income. If this is below 100,000 euros, then the fortune does not matter. It could be that you have saved several hundred thousand euros in assets, but the gross annual income is below this threshold. Then you are not subject to maintenance.”

However, the situation is different for children who earn more than 100,000 euros. In principle, these are subject to maintenance.

The amount of people with an income of over 100,000 euros in the care costs of their parents cannot be stated in a general way, said Lachenmaier. In such a case, she recommends advice from a lawyer to have the actual burden calculated. Legally, a child is entitled to a so -called “self -preservation” of 2000 euros net as a single or 3600 euros net as a couple. However, this does not mean that everything is also collected for the care costs.

In order to determine the actual burden, adjusted net income is first calculated-i.e. the income after deduction of taxes and social security, contributions, for example to retirement, operation of interest and loans, insurance companies and all further expenses of everyday life. All of these positions can be specified as “income -reducing”. The principle applies here: Parental maintenance must not endanger your own livelihood.

Half must be spent on the care costs of the parents of the income, which is less than all of their own costs and the self -preservation.

But there are also special cases here: If the child’s monthly burdens are so high despite the high income that parental support cannot be paid, it may be checked whether the child’s assets could be used to make it, said Lachmaier. “But here too, protective assets must be observed.”

If a person in need of care has several children, care is first taken to ensure how many children exceed the income limit of 100,000 euros. The children who are below the border do not have to pay parental support. If a child is above the border, but not his siblings, this child is alone. If there are several children above the limit of 100,000 euros, the parental support will be divided among them.

“In principle, everything that is rated as income according to income tax law,” explains Lachenmaier. Logically, this includes the salary, income from renting or leasing, as well as income from capital deposits such as dividends from stock transactions. The deposits in stocks or funds themselves are part of the assets.

If the parents’ assets are used up and none of the children earn more than 100,000 euros, the social welfare office will step in for further nursing costs – no matter how large the children’s wealth is at this point. So the thought is obvious before the nursing costs burden the parents’ assets to quickly give them away to the children and to have the social welfare office beared the costs. But the own contribution of the nursing costs is not that easy, explains Lachenmaier: “The whole thing has a time component. Of course I can give away money to my children, but these gifts have to be longer than ten years ago so as not to be reclaimed by the social welfare office.”

This is a civil law claim – to put it simply: All gifts made in the past ten years, especially money gifts, can be reclaimed by the social welfare office. Exceptions here are so -called “decency gifts”, that is, smaller grants, for example on birthdays. The social welfare office has the right to view the account statements of the past ten years, said Lachenmaier.

The situation is similar with real estate. Many parents would have their house or apartment overwritten at an early stage and have a lifelong right of residence. But here, too, the period of ten years should be observed in order to be on the safe side. Otherwise, the social welfare office could definitely reclaim the property as an asset or request value to cover the care costs, explains Lachenmaier.

Basically, all children-if their gross annual income is over 100,000 euros-are obliged to pay parental support. This also applies to an early demolition between parents and children.

But there are certain constellations in which children can be exempt from this payment. This includes, for example, long -term addiction behavior of the parent, neglect of the child or cases of violence and or abuse.

However, the evidence is problematic on this question, explains Lachenmaier: “A factual lecture is not sufficient. You have to demonstrate this accusation through written documents, documents or witnesses.” This is exactly what makes it difficult to prove neglecting or violence in the parents’ house in many cases.

In the case of adopted children, the social parents take the space of the biological parents. Accordingly, the child has to pay maintenance for the adoptive parents, but not for his biological parents.