Unemployment benefits provide financial security for employees who lose their jobs. But you do not automatically receive the unemployment benefit. How to apply for ALG 1, we explain in this guide. In addition, we give helpful tips for your application for unemployment benefits and explain everything important about the duration and amount of unemployment benefits I. Right at the beginning there are the best recommendations and tips.
Unemployment benefit – recommendations& Tips
Unemployment benefit – the most important facts in brief
Unemployment benefit – how to be financially secure if you lose your job
No one expects it – from one day to the next you have the notice in front of you, in three months your current employment is terminated and you are unemployed. What a shock! Who loses its job, thinks of thousand things at the same time, there the most important falls easily under the table: If you are quit, you have a right to unemployment pay. This provides financial security for the unemployed in Germany. To be entitled to unemployment benefits, however, you must meet a few requirements. In this guide, we explain how you can apply for unemployment benefit without any problems, what conditions must be observed and how long you are entitled to state support. First, we will briefly explain the differences between unemployment benefit 1 and 2.
Unemployment benefit I and II – briefly explained
In Germany, a distinction is made between unemployment benefit I and II (alternatively unemployment benefit 1 and unemployment benefit 2). Unemployment benefit I is a benefit of unemployment insurance and often precedes unemployment benefit II. Whether you are entitled to this benefit depends on your gross salary Age and from the Duration of your employment relationship from. The most important points at a glance:
Unemployment benefit I – important facts
Unemployment benefit 2 (also known as Hartz 4), on the other hand, is not paid by the unemployment insurance system, but is paid out of tax revenues. However, there are other important differences between the two forms. Hartz IV is a basic benefit for job-seekers and is paid according to need. Unemployment benefit II is intended to secure the minimum subsistence level for unemployed persons in Germany. Depending on how high your income is, however, you are entitled to Hartz 4 even if you are employed.
Unemployment benefit II/Hartz IV – important facts
The most important steps to take after receiving notice of termination
It is important that you register as a job-seeker with the employment agency at least three months before the final termination of your employment relationship.
Attention: The legal regulations require that you take this step in person at the employment agency responsible for you.
Of course, it is also possible that you will only be employed by your employer for less than three months after giving notice. The law also provides for this case:
If you learn of your dismissal less than three months before the end of the employment relationship, you must report to the employment agency within three days. If you do not comply with this deadline, you may be blocked from receiving unemployment benefits for one week, which will result in a reduction in the payment of your unemployment benefits. Possible further reasons that can lead to a blocking by the employment agency, we have presented further down in this guide: Blocking periods for ALG 1.
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How much unemployment benefit is there – amount and entitlement to ALG 1
The amount of unemployment benefit, as much as we have already told you, is based on the average gross salary that you received in the last twelve months before you received your notice. On the basis of your gross salary and the normally accruing deductions, a so-called flat-rate net salary is calculated. As a rule you receive 60 percent of this net salary. If you have children, your unemployment benefit increases to 67 percent. In addition, your tax class also has an influence on the amount of unemployment benefits that will be paid to you.
Tip: The employment agency provides an unemployment benefit calculator on its homepage, which you can use to check your entitlement individually.
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Duration of the unemployment benefit
How long will you receive unemployment benefit I?? This depends on the duration of your previous employment and on your age. In order to receive Arbeitslosen-geld II, you must have been employed for at least twelve months within a two-year framework period. Only then will you receive unemployment benefit I for a period of six months. If you have also been employed for more than twelve months within the last five years, you can extend your entitlement to up to twelve months. Long employment is also rewarded, because the longer you have been employed with compulsory insurance, the longer you are entitled to unemployment benefit. The following table provides clarity about the highest entitlement period according to the period of employment subject to compulsory insurance.
period of entitlement to unemployment benefit
| 12 | 6 | |
| 16 | 8 | |
| 20 | 10 | |
| 24 | 12 | |
| 30 | 50. | 15 |
| 36 | 55. | 18 |
| 48 | 58. | 24 |
As the table shows, unemployed people over the age of 50 are entitled to unemployment benefits for a longer period of time. If you are under 50 years old, you can receive unemployment benefit I for a maximum period of twelve months.
The qualifying period as an important condition for unemployment benefits
The duration of your employment relationship subject to social insurance contributions is described under the so-called entitlement. Therefore, it is considered, along with your age, the most important parameter for your entitlement to the Arbeits-losen-geld one.
As a rule, you are entitled to unemployment benefit I if you have worked for at least twelve months during the last two years before you were registered as unemployed.
Tip: The employment agency will check for you whether you meet the requirements for unemployment benefit I. Also our tables will help you to check your entitlement period to the payment of unemployment benefits.
Shortened Anwart-schaft with the ALG 1
If you were employed for less than twelve months before becoming unemployed, you are still entitled to unemployment benefit I – but you must meet certain requirements:
1. You must have been unemployed for at least two years before reporting your unemployment at least six months Have been employed with compulsory insurance.
2. Your gross pay in the last twelve months was not higher than 59.220 Euro.
3. The employment relationship was from the outset to a maximum of fourteen weeks limited.
If you meet these three conditions, you are entitled to unemployment benefit even if your entitlement is shortened. In the following table, we have taken into account the shortened entitlement and summarized the entitlement period for you depending on the duration of your employment.
Duration of entitlement to unemployment benefit in the case of reduced entitlement
| 6 | 3 |
| 8 | 4 |
| 10 | 5 |
ALG 1: Blocking periods and reductions
Under certain circumstances, the employment agency may impose a blocking period, during which you will receive no or less unemployment benefits. Reasons for the blocking of unemployment benefits are, for example, a self-inflicted resignation, Insufficient personal effort and the Failure to report unemployment. The highest blocking period applies if you have handed in your notice of termination yourself or if you have been offered a termination agreement which you have accepted.
Of course, no blocking period is imposed if your employer terminates your employment for operational or personal reasons. Even if you have filed a successful action for protection against dismissal, you are not usually threatened with a block on unemployment benefits.
Our recommendation: It is best to ask your employment agency if you are afraid of a blocking period – there are also exceptions to the various reasons for imposing a blocking period. Especially in the case of termination agreements, you should consult with the employment agency before signing. If you are threatened with a blocking period when you sign the termination agreement, you should rather give proper notice of termination. Read our guide on notice periods in employment law.