Overview
- Senior CDU/CSU and SPD lawmakers finalized a compromise that keeps service voluntary while requiring all 18-year-old men to register, after an earlier plan with automatic lottery call-ups was dropped.
- Questionnaires begin in 2026 and medical examinations are set to start in July 2027 with those born in 2008, creating a pipeline that affects men mandatorily while women can volunteer.
- Any compulsory call-ups would occur only if the Bundestag separately approves a “needs-based” measure, with a lottery used solely as a last resort for small cohorts, potentially up to about 5,000 per year.
- To boost volunteers, the package offers €2,600 monthly pay, a subsidy toward a driving licence after one year, and a new status for long‑serving volunteers, with a goal of 20,000 new recruits by 2026.
- The plan sets legal growth targets of roughly 255,000–270,000 active troops and about 200,000 reservists, up from around 182,000 today, with twice‑yearly parliamentary reviews and a draft law due before year‑end.