Overview
- The Bundeskabinett has forwarded a Gesetzentwurf to the Bundestag that targets €1.5 billion in savings in 2027 and €2 billion per year from 2028 and is planned to take effect on 1 January 2027 if passed.
- The draft suspends regular indexation, halves the heating-cost component, revises the Wohngeld calculation formula and introduces a €15 monthly floor that cancels tiny entitlements when the computed benefit would be under €15.
- About 1.2 million households now receive Wohngeld and the government says roughly one third of current recipient households—around 400,000—would lose entitlement under the proposed rules, with many pensioners and families with children at risk.
- The ministry’s own figures foresee some former recipients moving into basic social assistance (Grundsicherung), creating extra municipal costs estimated at €33 million in 2027 and €58 million in 2028, and NGOs warn of lost entitlements such as the Kinderzuschlag and greater housing insecurity.
- Welfare groups, tenant organisations and some regional politicians strongly oppose the plan and the Bundestag review may produce amendments before any changes are implemented, while existing Wohngeld decisions remain valid until they expire.