Parental allowance is a benefit for parents of infants and young children. It replaces part of the lost income if you want to be there for your child after the birth and interrupt or limit your professional work. Parental allowance is also available for parents who had no income at all before the birth.

There are three types of parental allowance:
- Basic parental allowance
- Parental allowance plus
- Partnership bonus

Parental allowance plus and the partnership bonus provide special support if you share the work and family responsibilities after the birth.

You can also apply for the various options if you are a single parent. Parental allowance is also available for adopted children and children in adoptive care.

As parents, you can decide for yourself who will claim parental allowance for which period. In the application, you must specify for which months of your child's life you would like to claim parental allowance and which parental allowance variant you choose.

The amount of the parental allowance is calculated individually. The calculation is based on the income you had before the birth and which ceases after the birth. If you had no income at all before the birth or if no income ceases after the birth, you will receive a minimum amount. In the case of the basic parental allowance, this is at least EUR 300.00 per month.

Tip: As an aid to planning and calculation, you can use the parental allowance calculator of the Federal Ministry of Family Affairs.