How long is Elterngeld paid?
Together, the parents are entitled to 12 monthly amounts of Basiselterngeld (§ 4 Abs. 3 BEEG).
If one parent's income is reduced in two months of the child's life, 2 further monthly amounts are added (partner months).
Basiselterngeld is available up to the 14. month of the child's life, Elterngeld Plus up to the 32. month of the child's life (§ 4 Abs. 1 BEEG).
Whether one of these conditions is met is decided by the Elterngeldstelle, not by us.
Months of the child's life, not calendar months
Elterngeld is paid in monthly amounts for months of the child's life (§ 4 Abs. 2 BEEG).
A month of the child's life runs from birthday to birthday, not from the first of the month to the first of the month. A child born on the 20th has its monthly change on the 20th.
The entitlement ends at the end of the month of the child's life in which a requirement ceases to apply (§ 4 Abs. 2 BEEG).
How the months are shared
The law sets three limits (§ 4 Abs. 3 BEEG):
- One parent is entitled to at most 12 monthly amounts of Basiselterngeld, plus at most 4 monthly amounts of Partnerschaftsbonus.
- Anyone who draws Elterngeld must draw it for at least 2 months of the child's life (§ 4 Abs. 4 Satz 2 BEEG).
- Both parents may only receive Basiselterngeld at the same time in 1 of the first twelve months of the child's life (§ 4 Abs. 6 Satz 1 BEEG).
Excepted are multiple births, premature births, children with an established disability, and children who trigger a sibling bonus.
Longer with Elterngeld Plus
Instead of one month of Basiselterngeld, two months of Elterngeld Plus are possible.
Elterngeld Plus is possible up to the 32. month of the child's life, as long as it is drawn from the 15th month onwards in consecutive months of the child's life by at least one parent (§ 4 Abs. 1 BEEG).
Single parents
One parent can draw the partner months alone if their income is reduced in two months of the child's life and one of these cases applies (§ 4c Abs. 1 BEEG):
- The conditions for the tax relief amount for single parents are met and the other parent lives neither with the child nor with this person in one home.
- Care by the other parent would endanger the child's welfare.
- Care by the other parent is impossible, for example because of serious illness or severe disability; economic reasons do not count here.
More months after a premature birth
If a child is born at least 6 weeks before the calculated due date, there are additional monthly amounts of Basiselterngeld (§ 4 Abs. 5 Satz 1 Nr. 1 bis 4 und Satz 3 BEEG).
| Weeks before the due date | Monthly amounts of Basiselterngeld together |
|---|---|
| at least 6 weeks | 13 |
| at least 8 weeks | 14 |
| at least 12 weeks | 15 |
| at least 16 weeks | 16 |
What counts is the calculated due date from the certificate of the doctor or midwife. With each step, the last month of the child's life up to which Basiselterngeld is possible also moves.