Germany: maternity protection calculator

When your protection period starts and ends in Germany and how much maternity allowance and employer top-up you get, even if the baby comes earlier or later.

Maternity allowance and top-up

€7,920.00

for 99 days, from Dec 4, 2026 to Mar 12, 2027

Starts Dec 4, 2026
Ends Mar 12, 2027
99 days with maternity allowance

The protection period starts on Friday, December 4, 2026, six weeks before the due date on Friday, January 15, 2027. If the baby arrives on the due date, it ends on Friday, March 12, 2027, 8 weeks after the birth: 99 days with maternity allowance, including the day of birth.

Your net pay of €2,400.00 a month is €80.00 per calendar day (three months divided by 90 days). The health insurer pays €13.00 of that as maternity allowance and your employer the rest, €67.00, as a top-up: for 99 days that is €1,287.00 from the insurer and €6,633.00 from the employer.

Calculated for employees with an unchanged net pay in the three months before the protection period. What counts is your employer’s payslip and the insurer’s decision; one-off payments, short-time work and absences you are not responsible for are governed by MuSchG § 21.
Maternity allowance and top-up are tax-free but raise the tax rate on your other income (progression clause). Above €410 a year you must file a tax return (EStG § 46 para. 2 No. 1).
From the day of birth, the benefits are offset against parental allowance (Elterngeld), and the months of life concerned count as Elterngeld months (BEEG § 3 para. 1 No. 1 and § 4 para. 4): plan both together.

Where the money comes from

Health insurer (maternity allowance)€1,28716%
Employer (top-up)€6,63384%

I’m not an accountant or a financial advisor. This is an estimate, for information only. Check with a professional before you decide.

Your numbers

example: change the numbers

Due date: day

The expected day of birth according to the certificate from your doctor or midwife. It decides when the protection period before the birth starts (MuSchG § 3 para. 1).

Due date: month

Due date: year

When does or did the baby arrive?

If the baby is not born on the due date, the periods shift: if it comes earlier, the unused days are added after the birth; if it comes later, the period before the birth is longer (MuSchG § 3).

On the due dateas calculatedEarlierbefore the due dateLaterafter the due date

How many days earlier or later?

Fill in only if you chose «Earlier» or «Later» above: the days between the due date and the day of birth.

Protection period after the birth

Eight weeks is the normal case. Twelve weeks apply to premature births (for example under 2,500 grams at birth), multiple births and, only on your request, if a disability is medically certified within eight weeks of the birth (MuSchG § 3 para. 2).

8 weeksthe normal case12 weekspremature, multiple, disability

How are you health-insured?

As a member of a statutory health insurer, the insurer pays the maternity allowance. If you are privately insured or insured through someone else, you get it from the Federal Office for Social Security, at most €210 in total (MuSchG § 19 para. 2).

Statutory, as a member€13 a day from the insurerPrivate or family-insuredat most €210 in one sum

Net pay per month

What you take home on average over the last three accounted months before the protection period starts, without one-off payments such as a Christmas bonus (MuSchG §§ 20 and 21). The calculator assumes it stays the same.

Show the detailsHide the details

The protection period at a glance

Period	Dates	Days
Before the birth	Dec 4, 2026 to Jan 14, 2027	42
Day of birth	Jan 15, 2027	1
After the birth	Jan 16, 2027 to Mar 12, 2027	56
Total	Dec 4, 2026 to Mar 12, 2027	99

How it works

The protection period before the birth starts six weeks (42 days) before the expected day of birth, as stated in the certificate from your doctor or midwife. The period after the birth ends eight weeks (56 days) after the birth, or twelve weeks for premature births, multiple births and, on request, a disability of the child (MuSchG § 3 paras. 1 and 2). If the baby does not arrive on the due date, the period before is shortened or extended accordingly; if it comes earlier, the unused days are added to the period after.
Maternity allowance is paid for the protection periods and the day of birth: from a statutory health insurer, at most €13 per calendar day. If you are not a member of a statutory insurer yourself, the Federal Office for Social Security pays at most €210 in total (SGB V § 24i, MuSchG § 19). The employer pays as a top-up the difference between €13 and the net pay per calendar day over the last three accounted calendar months before the protection period (MuSchG § 20).
Net pay per day is the sum of the net pay of the three months divided by 90 days; with unchanged pay, it is the monthly net pay divided by 30. The page multiplies the daily amount by the days of the protection periods and the day of birth and rounds to the cent.

Worked example

Due date Friday, January 15, 2027, birth on the due date: the protection period starts on December 4, 2026 (42 days before) and ends on March 12, 2027 (56 days after the birth): 42 + 1 + 56 = 99 days. With €2,400 net a month that is €80 a day: €13 from the insurer and €67 from the employer, €7,920 in total. The Federal Family Ministry’s example: €975 net a month × 3 = €2,925, divided by 90 days = €32.50 a day, of which €13 maternity allowance and €19.50 top-up.

Sources

Text checked on October 12, 2026

Good to know

This is a calculation from your details, for employees. For the self-employed, civil servants, students without a job and other cases, other rules apply: your health insurer or the Federal Office for Social Security can tell you what you are entitled to.
Before the birth you may keep working during the protection period if you expressly want to, and you can withdraw that at any time; after the birth an absolute ban on employment applies (MuSchG § 3 paras. 1 and 2). If you keep working in full before the birth, the maternity allowance is suspended while you receive pay (SGB V § 24i para. 4).
According to the ministry’s guide, a premature birth is a baby under 2,500 grams at birth, or one that, despite a higher weight, needs substantially extended care because of immature features; the medical certificate decides. For a child’s disability, the extension to twelve weeks applies only on your request.
The period before the birth follows the due date in the certificate; after the birth, the actual day counts. For a miscarriage from the 13th week of pregnancy, separate protection periods of two, six or eight weeks have applied since 1 June 2025 (MuSchG § 3 para. 5): this page does not calculate them.

Frequently asked questions

When does maternity protection start in Germany?

Six weeks before the expected day of birth certified by your doctor or midwife. Before the birth you may keep working voluntarily (MuSchG § 3 para. 1).

How long does maternity protection last after the birth?

Eight weeks; twelve weeks for premature births, multiple births and, on request, a disability of the child. If the baby comes before the due date, the unused days before the birth are added at the end (MuSchG § 3 para. 2).

How much is the maternity allowance?

A statutory health insurer pays at most €13 per calendar day. If your net pay is higher, your employer pays the rest as a top-up, up to your previous net pay (SGB V § 24i, MuSchG § 20).

What do I get if I am privately insured?

The Federal Office for Social Security pays at most €210 once, and the employer pays the top-up. With a daily sickness allowance policy, the insurer pays the agreed daily allowance instead (MuSchG § 19 para. 2; Familienportal des Bundes).

Is maternity allowance taxable?

It is tax-free but subject to the progression clause. Above €410 a year you must file a tax return (EStG § 3 No. 1 and § 46 para. 2 No. 1).

Next step

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