Last Updated on January 15, 2024
We continue to study the changes in Germany 2024. The previous post was rather sad – there they take our money and demand new demands. Let’s see if there will be any compensation in the financial, insurance, taxes and benefits.
Part 1. What’s new in Germany in 2024. Mobility, energy, ecology, consumption
What is PISA shock and why is it the norm and not the exception
New heating law in Germany
Used items in Germany: where to sell or buy, how they cheat
Train delays and strikes in Germany. What can you do
Germany ticket for regional public transport Deutschland-Ticket
Homeowners association in Germany
Who should file a tax return in Germany
Insurance and medicine
Price increase
Insurance prices will rise, and this will affect almost everyone:
– car insurance – 10 percent or more
– Hausratversicherung (insurance of household)
– private health insurance
Approximately half of the state health insurances companies increase additional interest on monthly contributions. The average additional percentage is 1.7. Each health insurance company (Krankenkasse) has the right to add its own percentage to the established basic percentage for health insurance. And it is no longer as small as it was before. In return, insurance companies offer free services from a list of those that are not usually paid for by companies. If you do not take into account these free services, then changing the Krankenkasse can bring you on average 250-300 euros of difference per year (depending on your income).
How to change health insurance in Germany
Part 1. GKV. How payments are formed
The upper limit up to which contributions were paid also rose to 62,100 euros gross per year (5,175 gross euros per month). This means that if you earn more, it is from this amount that the percentage you will pay for health insurance will be calculated. This is about 180 euros extra per year (for employees and if the total cash percentage is 16.3).
Expanding breast cancer screening
The upper age limit for free mammography has been raised to 75 years. That is, now, if you are between 50 and 75 years old, you can be screened for free once every two years.
State health insurance in Germany what is deductible – from A to L
What is covered by state health insurance in Germany. M-Y
Electronic prescription (E-Rezept) should become mandatory
Electronic prescriptions have been introduced for several years now, and finally they have become mandatory. We are talking about a pink prescription for (relatively) free drugs. I have never met this beast in real life: no one has offered it, and in conditions of praxis it is always difficult to demand it yourself – many patients and tired assistants are not situated to make any demands, just to resolve urgent issues like the next term.
Prescription in Germany. Red, blue, green prescriptions – when you must pay
You can fulfill your prescription either through a health card (then the card must be read at the pharmacy), or through an application for electronic prescriptions (then you need an NFC code of your card and PIN- it looks tricky for now), or by asking the praxis for a piece of paper with a code.
An electronic prescriptions is potentially a good thing (we’ll see how it’s implemented). Not only do you not lose it, but you can easily download it by online pharmacies. Previously, you had to send this prescription to an online pharmacy, which didn’t make much sense.
The electronic prescription will be tested on state insured people. In addition to the usual praxis, the rule applies to dentists and psychotherapists.
Paid sick leave for parents
In 2024-2025, if the child is sick, they will provide 15 days of paid sick leave per parent (30 days for single parents).
This is worse than the rules during corona (30 days per parent), but better than the rules before corona (10 days per parent).
Benefits, taxes
What will they give you or not take away?
Benefits
Bürgergeld (benefits for the long-term unemployed) increases by 40-60 euros (depending on age).
Those who receive Bildungspaket for children (families with children who are paid Bürgergeld, Wohngeld or Kinderzuschlag) can rejoice – it will also be increased.
Benefits for families in Germany
Taxation
The income tax-free base increases to 11,604 euros for singles and twice as much for married people. The limit at which maximum taxation applies also increases.
Kinderfreibetrag will also be more.
The limit at which Soli (solidarity tax) is paid will also be increased. It is paid only by those who earn a lot (and pay more than 8,130 euros in tax for a single or twice as much for a married).
Pensions
The disability pension for those who retired before 2018 will be increased. This is due to the fact that only the pensions of those who became pensioners after 2018 were brought into line with the current financial situation.
The regular pension will increase by about 3.5 percent from July.
Good earners will have to fork out
The earnings limit beyond which social contributions are not levied has been raised: it is now 7,450 euros in the new Länder (formerly GDR) and 7,550 euros per month in the old Länder.
This raises the maximum pension contributions to €1,404.30 in the west and €1,385.70 in the east. The maximum contributions for unemployment insurance increase to 196.30 and 193.70 euros respectively.
Restrictions for Elterngeld (benefits after the birth of a child) from April. It is planned not to pay child benefit to those parents who earn 200 thousand euros or more. Those affected by this are unhappy with this, but most do not understand why, with such earnings, Elterngeld is also needed.
Work
Minimum wage
The minimum wage per hour increases to 12.41 euros gross. This means that for those on a mini-job, the limit rises to 538 euros per month. The maximum working hours amount remains also (43 hours).
Those industries that had their own minimum wage per hour are also increasing it. Not all, however, from January 1st.
Part time work in Germany. What does freiberuflich, nebenberuflich, ehrenamtlich, gewerblich, Minijob mean
Freiberufler in Germany: how to fill in Anlage S and Fragebogen zur steuerlichen Erfassung
What is selbstständig, Unternehmer, Honorar, Firma in Germany
Raising the limit for Arbeitnehmer-Sparzulage
Arbeitnehmer-Sparzulage is money that the government adds if you set aside a certain amount from your salary for housing or other forms of your future security. An employer can offer this savings option to employees earning €40,000 / €80,000 per year (taxable income, single/married respectively). Until 2024, this limit was half as much. Now the opportunity to receive additional payments from the state has appeared for many married couples in which only one person works.
What is taxable income and where you will find it in your tax calculation: How to calculate tax in Germany. What is written in Berechnung in Elster
Improving conditions for vocational training or continuing education
Trainee (Azubi) should receive better conditions and assistance in order to be able to study outside their region. For example, they want to offer them “money for mobility.”
Azubi’s minimum monthly payments have also increased.
The organization can send workers who may lose their jobs due to lack of qualifications for retraining and pay them Qualifizierungsgeld – money in the amount of two-thirds of their earnings.
And other plans are at the adoption stage
Here we only talk about the two most discussed ones, although there are many more plans. But, as practice shows, everyone tends to forget that these are plans and perceive the information as already relevant. Therefore, in order not to mislead, we will only talk briefly about the plans.
Citizenship law
As I already wrote on social networks, the update of the citizenship law was not still adopted. Since the previous approximate implementation date was April 2024 (that is, if the law had been passed in December), the new estimate is accordingly shifted depending on when it is finally passed (there are rumors about February – but no promise).
Given the trend towards stricter treatment of refugees, I advise you to mentally prepare for a delay in the process, but to have your documents fully prepared so that you can immediately jump on this chariot when it does move.
Who can apply for German citizenship
Marijuana welcome
Also pending approval is a permit to grow marijuana. Three flowers can be planted at home and you can own up to 50 grams of grass. Or you can team up with those who are also eager to disconnect from reality and plant more grass. How they will control this and how they are going to protect the younger generation is a big mystery to me.
What’s new in Germany in 2024. Mobility, energy, ecology, consumption
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#society, politics
#housing problems
#finance
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