Overview

• Pay for Wehrdienstleistende will match Zeitsoldaten, with an 18‑year‑old Schütze moving from €1,837.00 gross to €2,706.99 gross, which the Bundeswehr example puts at about €2,320 net.
• From 2026 all 18‑year‑olds will receive a Bundeswehr letter; men must respond and may opt out, women may volunteer, and mandatory musterings for men resume in July 2027 for cohorts born after 2008.
• The cabinet’s approval on August 27 sets the draft up for parliamentary hearings starting in early September and a first reading in October, according to SPD defense lawmakers.
• CDU figures, including Thomas Röwekamp, want a built‑in automatism with clear thresholds to reimpose compulsory service if volunteer targets fall short, while SPD leaders favor starting on a voluntary basis but signal openness to talks.
• The reform is framed as necessary to meet NATO readiness goals of roughly 260,000 active personnel and 200,000 reservists, as voices like Roderich Kiesewetter also press for a broad Bundeswehr overhaul to address equipment, training, and retention.