From 2027, parents in Germany will no longer have to apply for child benefit after a birth: Kindergeld is meant to arrive automatically. The Bundesrat gave its final approval on 25 September 2026, after the Bundestag passed the law on 9 July. It is due to take effect on 1 January 2027, but the rollout comes in two stages, and not every family benefits at the same time.
The first stage is expected in March 2027. It covers newborns whose parents already receive Kindergeld for an older child; the Familienkasse already holds the bank account and the entitled parent, and can take birth data from the registry office. The second stage, expected in November 2027 at the earliest, covers first children. Three conditions apply: at least one parent lives with the child in Germany, the Familienkasse holds an IBAN, and at least one parent works in Germany. Families who cannot show this must still apply; in such cases they get a welcome letter with a pre-filled form.
What does not change is the check. The Familienkasse still verifies entitlement, and where data is incomplete or doubtful the current procedure applies. “We want a modern state that is there for people,” Finance Minister Lars Klingbeil said when presenting the draft, adding that parents should be able to focus on their baby rather than paperwork. The underlying idea is “once only”: data the state already holds should not be requested twice.
For refugees from Ukraine the picture is mixed. According to the Federal Employment Agency, parents with a residence permit under Section 24 of the Residence Act are entitled to Kindergeld if the child lives in Germany, another EU or EEA state, or Switzerland; the permit must allow employment. Applications currently run through forms KG1 and KG1-AnK. A family expecting a second or third child in 2027 that already receives Kindergeld should benefit from stage one. A family with a first child and no job in Germany, which is common among recent arrivals, will mostly still have to act themselves. That is our reading of the published conditions; how the Familienkassen will handle special cases is not yet known in detail.
One piece of advice holds regardless of the reform: do not wait. Kindergeld is paid retroactively for six months only, so anyone not yet receiving it should apply now. Also note that for recipients of Bürgergeld, Kindergeld counts as income, so a rise does not enlarge the household budget.
Separately, the government plans to lift Kindergeld from €259 to €267 a month in 2027 and €272 in 2028 as part of its income tax reform. According to the cabinet decision of 2 September 2026 this is still a draft. See our analysis of the 2027 tax reform.
Sources: Bundesregierung, Federal Employment Agency, Bundesrat, gegen-hartz.de
