Germany: becoming unemployed, registration and claim

The end

0 of 5

Check that the dismissal is in writing and signed.
A dismissal or a termination agreement needs written form; electronic form is not enough (BGB § 623).
Check the notice period and the date the employment ends.
The site’s notice period calculator gives the statutory period; the contract or a collective agreement may differ.
Decide in the first days whether to challenge the dismissal: you have three weeks to sue.
The period runs from receipt of the written dismissal (Dismissal Protection Act § 4); a lawyer or the union can advise.
Do not sign a termination agreement or resign yourself without knowing the disqualification period.
Whoever ends the employment without good cause risks a 12-week disqualification period (SGB III § 159).
Work out a possible severance payment with the severance calculator.
Severance does not count in the assessment pay of the unemployment benefit (SGB III § 151).

0 of 3

Register as seeking work: at the latest three months before the employment ends.
With less than three months’ notice, within three days of learning of the end (SGB III § 38).
Note the date you learned the employment would end.
It decides the three-day deadline; a late registration can cost a one-week disqualification period (§ 159 para. 6).
Expect a first advice and placement interview.
The agency should hold it without delay after registration, in person or by video (§ 38 para. 1a).

0 of 5

Register as unemployed at the latest on the first day without employment.
The registration as seeking work does not replace it. Earliest three months before the start (Federal Employment Agency; SGB III § 141).
Online you need an ID card with the online ID function enabled.
An electronic residence permit or an eID card also works; identification goes through the BundID.
In person, bring your ID with your current address, or your passport with a registration certificate.
It is best to book the appointment online (Federal Employment Agency).
If the agency is closed on the first day, register on the next opening day.
The registration then takes effect back to the day the agency was not open (§ 141 para. 2).
If you are still sick beyond the end, register as unemployed on the day you recover.
That is what the Federal Employment Agency says.

0 of 5

Submit the claim for unemployment benefit, ideally about two weeks before unemployment starts.
The registration as unemployed counts as the day of the claim; for approval you need the claim and the employment certificate (Federal Employment Agency).
Ask your employer for the employment certificate (Arbeitsbescheinigung).
It must certify all facts important for the entitlement: activity, start, end, reason and pay (SGB III § 312).
Have the payslips of the last 12 months ready.
The gross of this period determines the amount of the benefit (§§ 150 and 151).
Work out your unemployment benefit with the site’s calculator and check the amount and duration.
Example: €3,000 gross, tax class I, no child: €41.56 a day, €1,246.80 a month.
Check your tax class: the one at the start of the year counts.
Later changes only count under conditions (§ 153 paras. 2 and 3).

0 of 6

Attend all reporting appointments.
A missed appointment can cost a one-week disqualification period (§ 159 para. 6).
Prove your own efforts to find work when the agency asks.
Missing proof can cost a two-week disqualification period (§ 159 para. 5).
Check the agency’s job offers: refusing without good cause costs 3 weeks of disqualification the first time.
The second time it is 6, then 12 weeks (§ 159 para. 4).
Report any side income.
It is offset after deducting taxes, social contributions, work expenses and a €165 monthly allowance (§ 155).
Report at once when you start a new job or become self-employed.
Otherwise the effect of the registration as unemployed ends when you start the activity (§ 141 para. 3).
Remember: after more than six weeks’ interruption of unemployment, the effect of the registration ends.
You then register as unemployed again (§ 141 para. 3).

0 of 2

Remember the tax return: unemployment benefit is tax-free but counts under the progression clause.
It raises the tax rate on the rest of your income (EStG § 32b).
Plan your budget with the daily rate: a full month counts 30 days.
The emergency fund calculator shows how long your reserve lasts.