From the FDP’s point of view, the citizen’s allowance is too high and should be cut. The traffic light coalition partners SPD and Greens are signaling: We won’t do that. And then there is the legal situation.
The SPD and the Greens have rejected an FDP proposal to reduce the citizen’s allowance. Under current law, a reduction in social benefits would not be possible anyway, as the SPD-led Federal Ministry of Social Affairs made clear.
FDP parliamentary group leader Christian Dürr made a proposal via the “Bild” newspaper: The citizen’s allowance is “currently 14 to 20 euros too high per month”. “My suggestion would be a downward adjustment, because the last calculation estimated inflation to be higher than it actually was.” A reduction would relieve taxpayers of up to 850 million euros and increase work incentives. The FDP parliamentary group would support the necessary legal changes.
Greens criticize “wild FDP fantasies”
The SPD and the Greens rejected the idea immediately and in strong terms. “I don’t think it’s a good idea to constantly create uncertainty with completely half-baked ideas that are far removed from reality,” said Martin Rosemann, the spokesman for the SPD parliamentary group for work and social affairs. The deputy parliamentary group leader of the Green parliamentary group, Andreas Audretsch, said that many families work and also receive citizen’s allowance because they don’t have enough money with the children. “These families plan with the money. We will not expose them to the arbitrariness of wild and false FDP fantasies.”
Simply cutting the citizen’s allowance is not possible. This would require changing the laws for calculating the benefit, which can be considered out of the question in view of the reaction from the SPD and the Greens. According to the law, the citizen’s allowance rates are adjusted annually in line with general price and wage developments in the country. Compared to its predecessor, Hartz IV, the citizen’s allowance also includes other current price developments, for example for food and clothing, in the calculation. This led to a sharp increase. At the beginning of 2024, the citizen’s allowance was increased by a total of 12 percent. Since then, single people have received 563 euros a month, 61 euros more than in the previous year.
Zero increase next year
The calculations for how high the citizen’s allowance should be next year are due to be made soon. The so-called continuation of the rates from January will be determined by regulation in the autumn. However, there would be no reduction even if this were calculated, for example due to falling prices. The Federal Ministry of Social Affairs pointed this out. The amounts would then be “continued at the current level through a legal property protection regulation”. This is exactly what the ministry is expecting for 2025 – a zero increase.
Last year, Germany spent around 42.6 billion euros on citizens’ allowances, compared to 36.6 billion the previous year. The state cannot cut citizens’ allowances at will. The Federal Constitutional Court has also ruled on this. It is intended to ensure a dignified minimum standard of living for those who cannot cover their living expenses from their own income and assets.
Source: Stern
I have been working in the news industry for over 6 years, first as a reporter and now as an editor. I have covered politics extensively, and my work has appeared in major newspapers and online news outlets around the world. In addition to my writing, I also contribute regularly to 24 Hours World.
