Families: Claims worth billions from defaulting maintenance payers

The German state has accrued claims totaling more than five billion euros from defaulters on maintenance payments. As of December 31, 2023, outstanding claims amounting to 5.178 billion euros were recorded in the maintenance advance offices of the federal states, the Federal Ministry for Family Affairs announced at the request of FDP MP Martin Gassner-Herz. The amount is the sum of the claims that have accumulated over many years. The “Welt” reported on the ministry’s response, which is available to the German Press Agency.

With the maintenance advance, the state steps in if someone does not pay maintenance or does not pay sufficient maintenance to their children. The state can reclaim the benefit if it turns out that the person liable for maintenance would actually be able to pay.

Information about actual performance is often missing

However, the Family Ministry of Lisa Paus (Greens) points out that the nominal value of the maintenance claims to be pursued “does not represent an expectation of the amount of income that can be achieved in the short term”. Because there is often a lack of information about the current, actual performance of debtors, it is “uncertain whether, when and to what extent income can be generated”. The burden of proof lies with the debtors. If they do not provide the necessary information, the maintenance advance offices “must therefore assume that there is a fundamental claim to be pursued”.

Gassner-Herz: Collecting the money is also a question of justice

Gassner-Herz criticized the government’s response. “Family Minister Lisa Paus was particularly noticeable by demanding more and more money that wasn’t there. Now it turns out that there is a lot of money in her jurisdiction that she is not in a position to collect,” he told the newspaper. Consistent collection of funds is also a question of justice, “when the good taxpayer steps in for maintenance debtors who shirk their responsibilities.”