From January 2027 child benefit (Kindergeld) rises from €259 to €267 per child per month, and to €272 from 2028. A separate law, already promulgated, will also scrap the application for many newborns. What changes, who is covered and what parents can do now.
How much more is it in practice?
Eight euros more a month is €96 a year per child. A family with two children gets €192 extra in 2027; by 2028 the gap to today’s rate is €13 per child per month, or €156 a year each. The figures are in the draft Income Tax Reform Act 2027, approved by cabinet on 2 September. The Bundestag held its first reading on 8 October and the bill is now with the Finance Committee. No final vote has taken place, so the numbers are planned, not guaranteed. The child tax allowance also rises, to €10,056 in 2027 and €10,236 in 2028; this matters mainly for higher earners, as the tax office automatically checks whether Kindergeld or the allowance is better for you.
The government puts the reform’s overall relief at about €10 billion. Its own example: a working family with two children and €60,000 of taxable income saves more than €600 a year from 2028. Criticism comes from both sides: the Greens want a bigger increase so the gap to the allowance does not widen, while the Left says relief for incomes up to €250,000 is too generous.
Kindergeld without an application: who, and when?
The Bundestag passed the “Act introducing application-free child benefit” on 9 July, the Bundesrat approved it on 25 September, and it was published in the Federal Law Gazette on 20 October. The idea came from the social-state commission’s recommendations in January; cabinet followed in March.
The rollout has two stages. First, expected in spring 2027, for a second or further child where the family already receives Kindergeld for an older one; payment goes to the current recipient. Then, expected from November 2027, for first children, provided at least one parent lives with the child and works in Germany and the family office has the parents’ IBAN.
In practice, the registry office and residents’ registration office report the birth, the Federal Central Tax Office assigns the child’s tax ID and informs the Familienkasse, which checks entitlement and pays. The check remains; only the application disappears. Finance Minister Lars Klingbeil (SPD) described the aim as “more time for the baby instead of annoying bureaucracy”. The ministry expects about 300,000 fewer applications a year.
Where an application is still needed
You will still have to apply if data is missing, if it is unclear which parent the child mainly lives with (after a separation, say), or if parents work in Germany but live abroad. The Familienkasse then sends a letter with a QR code and a pre-filled form that must still be submitted. The German Children’s Fund, through managing director Holger Hofmann, criticises that parents not in work miss out in the second stage even though entitlement does not depend on income.
For Ukrainian families with a residence permit, who is entitled does not change, only the route. Keep residence documents and the children’s tax IDs ready. Our view: if you are expecting a baby, register your IBAN with the Federal Central Tax Office via ELSTER or the IBAN+ app before the birth. Until the new process starts the current application procedure applies, and it should not be put off because Kindergeld is back-paid only for a limited period. The law text and your Familienkasse are authoritative.
Sources: Bundestag, Bundesregierung, Federal Finance Ministry, ZDFheute
