Child benefit is paid for all children up to the age of 18 who are either a resident of or habitually resident in Germany.
For each child, parents receive a monthly allowance regardless of their income:
Amount of child benefit / 2017 / 2018
for the first child / 192 € / 194 €
for the second child / 192 € / 194 €
for the third child / 198 € / 200 €
for each additional child / 223 € / 225 €
Under certain conditions, child benefit may also be received for stepchildren, foster children, grandchildren, and siblings.
A claim to child benefit can also be asserted for children over 18 years of age up to the age of 25 if they complete vocational training. Parents whose children take part in federal voluntary service are also entitled to child benefit. In case of a lack in a job or training place on the side of the child, payments may proceed when meeting certain criteria.
Child benefit is only paid to parents who live or usually reside in Germany. If parents live abroad, they must be subject to income tax in Germany.
Applications for child benefit can only be submitted to the responsible family fund of the Hamburg Employment Agency. For employees of the public service in Hamburg, the Family Fund of the Centre for Personnel Services is responsible for the payment of child benefit.
Detailed information on child benefit can be found at www.familienkasse.de and in the Federal Family Guide. A form service for applying for child benefit and notifying changes as well as a collection of all fillable forms for child benefit can also be found on the website.
In addition to child benefit, parents may receive a child supplement. The amount of the child benefit depends on the income and assets of the parents and the children.
Since the 1st of January 2017, the child supplement has amounted to a maximum of 170 euros per month per child.
The benefit is paid to parents who meet their own needs through earned income but are unable to cover the needs of their children. The child supplement requires for the children to live in their parents’ household, be unmarried and under 25 years of age.
Applications for the child supplement can be submitted to the responsible Family Fund of the Hamburg Employment Agency.
Detailed information and the application form can be found at www.kinderzuschlag.de and in the Federal Family Guide.
Families who receive the child benefit are also entitled to benefits for education and participation as part of the Hamburg education package.
Specification of tax identification numbers
Since the 1st of January 2016, an additional prerequisite to receive child benefit involves the specification of the tax identification numbers of the person entitled to child benefit and of the children, irrespective of their date of birth. This is to ensure that child benefit is paid only once for each child.
Child benefit forms: https://www.kindergeld.org/formulare/kindergeld-formulare-in-englischer-sprache.html