Child benefit training: differences in trainee child benefit entitlement

Parents receive over 30 billion euros in child benefit in Germany every year. Up to the age of 18, you are automatically entitled to financial support. What happens afterwards when the youngsters start an apprenticeship or study? In principle, children up to the age of 25 claim state funding if they are serious about their teaching. You get child benefit in education and study only if you are aiming for a professional qualification. If an apprentice breaks off the apprenticeship, the child benefit entitlement lapses. We provide all further information on the entitlement to child benefit during training in our guide article.

Entitlement to child benefit in training

Who gets child benefit during training?

Financial support during the training period is given to parents whose children are pursuing serious apprenticeships or studies. The family fund controls the training and study duration. If this is significantly below or above the average duration of training for the professional goal, the institute doubts the seriousness of the teaching. In addition, applicants receive child benefit in training only if they are in the family fund performance records send.

Anyone who receives child benefit during their studies must also provide evidence. In addition to certificates of attendance, further evidence must be submitted in the form of the study certificate and training certificates issued per semester. If there is no obligation to attend, the authority requests work submitted as proof of performance. This includes homework or internship certificates. For the initial training of the child, the training with a Ten hours a week accompanied.

Child benefit in training

Overview of the requirements for entitlement to child benefit in training

Parents of adult children who are in vocational training are entitled to monthly child benefit payments under the following conditions:

The child is between the ages of 18 and 25; Parents apply for child benefit from the family fund; Training measures are geared towards a specific professional goal; the child is serious about his education; it does not deviate from the specified duration of study or training; it proves seriousness through proof of education, certificates of study, proof of achievement Time spent on education of at least 10 hours a week child does not generate harmful income during secondary education; in the event of maternity or illness, appropriate information is sent to the family fund immediately in order to continue receiving the child benefit.

Tip: Child benefit is not only available in training or studies. A dual study program is also worthy of funding.

Amount of child benefit in training

How much do trainees receive child benefit?

In recent years, parents have benefited from a steady increase in child benefit. Financial support is expected to increase by another two euros as of January 1, 2018, so that the first and second child each 194 euros per month is. For the third child, child benefit increases to 198 euros (2017) and 2018 to 200 euros. Starting with the fourth child, parents will receive 225 euros per child per month from 2018.

Duration of child benefit receipt

When does the entitlement to child benefit end??

The withdrawal period for child benefit ends on successful completion the first apprenticeship or with the Completion of the 25th year of life. If the offspring receive the journeyman’s letter or the Bachelor’s degree, the child benefit payments are suspended.

Child benefit after dropping out of training

The payment of child benefit also ends when the child stops studying or studying. In this case, it informs the family fund about the termination of the training. If it continues to receive financial support, there is a risk of repayment of child benefit after the termination of training.

Entitlement to child benefit after graduation and between training and studies

If the child is between two training steps, the family continues to receive child benefit for a period of four months. After reaching the Abitur, the child has more than a quarter of a year to start an apprenticeship or study. If this does not happen, the family fund will stop payments automatically. Likewise, child benefit between training and studies paid when the other requirements are met.

Child benefit during the job search

A basic distinction is made between those looking for training and those looking for work: If the trainee can be shown to be looking for new training after graduating from high school or after dropping out of an apprenticeship to Children over the age of 25 are entitled to child benefit. On the other hand, if an apprentice is looking for work, there is a right to payment of child benefit up to the age of 21.

Application for child benefit in training

How to apply for child benefits after their 18th birthday?

If the child starts to be 19 years old and takes up an apprenticeship or study, the parents apply for child benefit again. First, they clarify whether the offspring meets the requirements for child benefit in training. With the certificate of enrollment or the training contract, parents turn to the responsible family fund.

You can find the corresponding child benefit application on the website of the Employment Agency. In addition to this, the applicant must also fill out the "Child facility". He encloses the following information and documents:

child’s birth tax > if available, the child benefit number data of the bank details

The applicant then waits for the authority’s response.

Child benefit for secondary education

What happens during a second vocational training??

If the completed first training enables the child to practice the profession, it is considered the first vocational training. With their conclusion The child benefit entitlement does not necessarily end. If the offspring starts a second apprenticeship or a subsequent course of study, the family fund checks whether this results in harmful income. With the second training it does not matter whether it builds on the first one or continues it. If the child drops out of the first education to start another apprenticeship, the child benefit entitlement initially runs for four months further.

What happens to child benefit if you don’t get an apprenticeship?

If there is no new teaching job during this period, the family will not receive any further payments. The situation is different if the child proves that he is trying to find an apprenticeship. For this purpose, it sends copies of application letters to the family fund, for example. A child under the age of 25 continues to receive child benefit if, despite their own efforts, they do not get a training place.

When is the child benefit rejected??

If the family fund rejects the claim, the applicants refer to paragraph 32 (4) number 2b. If families received the child benefit illegally – for example, because there was no search for a training place – the family fund reclaims the amounts. As a rule, they are due immediately. Those affected can find out what options for objection and limitation periods apply on the website of the Family Benefits Office.

Part-time job with child benefit

What does the family fund understand by harmful income??

If the child has a part-time job while studying or studying, there has been no need to fear an income or salary limit since 2012. Harmful income arises if you work more than 20 hours a week. Harmful types of income include:

self-employed work, non-self-employed work and income from agriculture and forestry.

Mini jobs or marginal employment on a 450 euro basis are considered harmless. Likewise, children who are pursuing the following earning opportunities are not afraid of their child benefit entitlement:

Accumulate capital assets, work in an au pair relationship Earnings by renting or leasing.

Alternatives to child benefit during training

What if I am not entitled to child benefit??

If the prerequisites for a child benefit are missing, it is necessary to look for other financing options. Likewise, for some trainees, the child benefit application involves a lot of effort and little benefit. Therefore, the decision is often made not to use the financial support. Instead, trainees choose an alternative to child benefit, for example our loan for trainees, which is quick and fair financial help, especially due to its short term of 30 days. In order to receive this, the applicants meet several requirements. Banks and savings banks generally only grant loans adults, their Reside in Germany located. A negative Schufa entry reduces the chance of receiving an online loan.

In addition, its approval begins regular income ahead. Child benefit and BAföG do not count towards this. If the children receive salary as part of their training, they state this as income. In order to increase lending, it is worth appointing a creditworthy co-applicant. As a result, banks often grant borrowers more favorable terms.

The co-applicant increases the bank’s confidence in the high-risk trainees. This is due, for example, to the fact that the former has a say in the use of money. Family members or the partner are suitable as co-applicants if they meet the requirements for a loan. These include:

the regular income, the employment without termination and the probationary period passed

If there is no way for the trainee to repay the loan within the specified deadlines, the co-applicant will pay it back.

Tax tips for trainees

Do I have to state the child benefit in the income tax return??

The child benefit is paid to the parents of a child. Because of this, it does not affect their tax. Trainees and students often only receive a low income. In order not to endanger child benefit entitlement, they pursue employment for a maximum of 20 hours per week. Taxes also reduce the low wages.

To prevent this, the trainees and students who take a part-time job stick to practical tax tips. They submit their tax returns on a regular basis. If the advertising costs are higher than the income, a loss is determined. After submitting this special tax return, those affected will benefit from Repayments by the tax office.

There are also tax tips that secure child benefit between school and training. If the child waits longer than four months for a specific training or study place, he or she initially receives child benefit without training. This happens if the family fund has received confirmation from the apprenticeship. If the child rejects an offered apprenticeship, the claim expires. In this case it is considered "no longer willing to train".

Overview: Tips for child benefit in training

Up to their 18th birthday, parents receive the child benefit every month without the risk of inconsistencies. From the age of 19 it is important for the family to clarify the requirements for a new application for child benefit. The applicants make sure to send honest information to the family fund. If ignorance leads to a faulty application for child benefit or the unlawful payment of financial support, there is a risk of reimbursement. Here, the family fund, as a service of the employment agency, makes the family member who receives the child benefit obligatory.

If the mother proves to be the applicant, but passes the money on to the child, she still makes the repayment. So that the adversity in child benefit does not arise during training, it is worth it:

to inform the family fund of any change in the child’s life, to disclose the child’s income situation, to lodge an objection in the event of a recovery and, if this does not help, to ask the family fund for the possibility of payment in installments.

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