Overview
- Because the benefit is recalculated every two years, there will be no increase in 2026, with the next scheduled adjustment set for January 2027 after an average 15% rise on January 1, 2025.
- Roughly 1.2 million households currently receive the subsidy, with large shares being families, including many single parents, and pensioners.
- A November 2025 Fraunhofer FOKUS study reports that documentation burdens, unclear communication and stress lead to non‑take‑up or abandoned applications, with findings feeding into an Agora Digitale Transformation modernization project due by late December 2025.
- Dortmund illustrates the strain, reporting about 10,000 recipients, a roughly 20% rise in applications and processing times of four to six months, with applicants describing months‑long waits for decisions.
- Benefit calculations hinge on household size, income and local rent caps, include heating and climate supplements, and can be boosted by specific allowances such as a reported €1,800 income disregard in certain disability or care cases.