How long is Elterngeld paid?

Together you get at most 14 months of Basic Elterngeld; with ElterngeldPlus and the partnership bonus it can run until month of life 32. Enter your due date to see the dates.

Basic Elterngeld: up to 14 months

Together you get 12 monthly amounts of Basic Elterngeld (Basiselterngeld). 2 partner months (Partnermonate) are added if one parent earns less than before in two months with Elterngeld; maternity pay instead of salary counts. Each parent can take at most 12 months, and Basic is only paid until month of life 14 of the child.

ElterngeldPlus: twice as long

One month of Basic can be swapped for two months of Plus. Plus is at most half as much but lasts twice as long: 14 months of Basic become up to 28 months of Plus. From month of life 15, Plus has to continue without a gap, for at least one of you.

Maternity leave counts as Basic

Months of life in which the mother gets maternity pay (Mutterschaftsgeld), an employer top-up or civil servant pay count as her Basic months. Usually these are the first two. They cannot be swapped for Plus, so Plus then lasts until month of life 26.

Partnership bonus: until month of life 32

If you both work 24 to 32 hours a week at the same time, each of you gets 2 to 4 months of partnership bonus (Partnerschaftsbonus), at the level of Plus. Plus and bonus run at most until month of life 32, that is until the child is 2 years and 8 months old.

Parental leave is something else

Parental leave (Elternzeit) is time off work, until the 3rd birthday, some of it up to the 8th. Elterngeld is the money during that time and usually ends earlier. You notify your employer of parental leave and apply for Elterngeld with the Elterngeldstelle.

Common questions

How long do you get Elterngeld?

At most 14 months of Basic Elterngeld together, if both parents take Elterngeld or one parent is a single parent. ElterngeldPlus for up to 28 months, with the partnership bonus until month of life 32 of the child.

How long can one parent get Elterngeld?

At most 12 months of Basic Elterngeld or 24 months of ElterngeldPlus, plus up to 4 months of partnership bonus. Single parents can get all 14 months on their own.

Until when is Basic Elterngeld paid?

Until the end of month of life 14, after a premature birth, depending on the week, until month 15 to 18. After that only Plus or the partnership bonus is possible.

Does maternity leave count towards Elterngeld?

Yes. Months of life with maternity pay count as the mother’s Basic months, even if she does not apply for Elterngeld for them. Maternity pay is deducted from Elterngeld.

Can Elterngeld be paid retroactively?

For at most 3 months of life before the month in which the application (Antrag) arrives. The page “How to apply for Elterngeld” shows the last day for your application.

Is Elterngeld paid for longer with twins?

No, but you may both take Basic Elterngeld at the same time, and there is a multiple-birth supplement of €300 per month of Basic.