Overview
- The Merz cabinet cleared a draft law renaming Bürgergeld to Grundsicherung and tightening the regime, with the Bundestag to debate it and the Federal Employment Agency warning the timeline is technically tight.
- Sanctions are toughened: a second missed jobcenter appointment cuts the standard rate by 30 percent for one month, a third miss keeps housing paid for one month before all payments cease if contact is not restored, with an opportunity to be heard and protections for families and people with mental illness.
- For cooperation breaches, the standard rate can be cut by 30 percent for three months, and refusal of suitable work can halt the standard rate entirely for one to two months while housing costs continue.
- Asset rules are tightened by abolishing the initial grace period and introducing age‑based protected savings of €5,000 to €20,000, plus a first‑year cap on covered rent at 1.5 times the local benchmark and a tilt back toward faster job placement with targeted exceptions.
- A 13‑member pension commission chaired by Constanze Janda and Frank‑Jürgen Weise is tasked to propose long‑term reforms by mid‑2026, and the cabinet also advanced measures on infrastructure acceleration, wolf management and expanded pharmacy vaccinations, with legal tests of the sanctions architecture expected.