Overview
- Bärbel Bas outlined the cap as part of a shift to a new basic security system, with the labor ministry confirming the concept but leaving concrete thresholds, legal design and timing open.
- Under the proposal, municipal jobcenters could define a regional maximum price per square metre to address extreme overpricing seen in crowded, substandard housing.
- If the ceiling were exceeded, jobcenters could launch cost‑reduction procedures, require tenants to cover the excess from their standard rate or move, with case‑by‑case reviews remaining in place.
- The ministry signaled safeguards, noting rents can still be covered when a move would be uneconomic and that non‑abusive cases could continue to be paid despite breaching the cap.
- Reactions split social groups, with the DGB and Sanktionsfrei warning of hardship and potential homelessness for recipients, while the SoVD called the cap a useful tool against abuse and urged protections against forced relocations; reported fraud prosecutions have been rare, with three fines from 209 charges in 2024.