Which contributions to unemployment and disability insurance can I specify?
Contributions to voluntary insurance against unemployment and incapacity can be claimed.
If you have taken out voluntary incapacity insurance, you can claim the contributions as special expenses in your tax return.
However, these contributions are only recognised to the extent that the maximum amount for "other insurance" of 1.900 Euro for employees and pensioners and 2.800 Euro for self-employed persons has not yet been exhausted by contributions to basic health and nursing care insurance.
(2021): Which contributions to unemployment and disability insurance can I specify?
Is voluntary occupational disability insurance worthwhile?
Since the reform of the state pension in 2001, there have also been changes to the statutory occupational disability insurance. For anyone born after 2 January 1961, there is practically no statutory occupational disability insurance. This is because the distinction between statutory occupational and incapacity insurance is no longer made.
Instead, there is a two-tiered disability pension, which depends solely on whether the insured person can still work at all, regardless of their previous occupation and current job market prospects.
Those who could work three to six hours a day - in any job - receive half the disability pension. The full disability pension, which corresponds to the previous incapacity pension, is only available to those who cannot be expected to work three hours a day.
All pension-insured persons born before 2 January 1961 are exempt from this regulation. For them, occupational protection still applies. They receive half the incapacity pension if they can no longer work in their previous occupation. Younger employees can only receive a disability pension if they can generally only work in a limited capacity or not at all. However, if no part-time position can be found, those who are actually only entitled to half the disability pension due to their daily capacity could also receive a full - labour market-related - disability pension.
In addition, you must have paid contributions for at least five years to be entitled to the statutory pension at all. During the first nine years of an occupational disability, the claims are only temporary. Every three years, it is checked whether the insured person is able to work again.
All employees who can still work at least six hours a day in any job - and this is often assumed - will not receive a single cent from the pension fund.
Insure occupational disability privately
To maintain your standard of living in the event of occupational disability, it is almost essential to take out additional private occupational disability insurance. The earlier you decide on occupational disability insurance, the lower the monthly premiums.
In addition, the entry barriers increase with age. Insurers often require health checks or refuse to conclude a contract altogether. Many insurance companies offer occupational disability cover as a standalone policy. Premiums and benefits vary greatly, so compare the offers carefully.
However, the standalone contract is not necessarily the cheapest. Those with dependents to support are best advised to opt for term life insurance with an occupational disability supplement. This combined contract is usually only slightly more expensive, often even cheaper than the standalone policy. In addition to the occupational disability pension, the double package also secures the provision for dependents in the event of death.
This option is also recommended for trainees and students who will start a family later, even if the term life insurance is not yet needed. Less recommended, however, is the endowment life insurance with an occupational disability supplement. This combines the benefits of occupational disability and life insurance with a savings plan. In the event of invalidity, the insurance company takes over the savings contributions, so retirement provision is secured even in the event of occupational disability.
However: The premiums for endowment life insurance are very high. Although you can suspend payments for a while if necessary, you will also lose occupational disability cover during this time. So, opt for term life insurance with an occupational disability supplement and a separate retirement programme.
(2021): Is voluntary occupational disability insurance worthwhile?
How can I take out voluntary unemployment insurance?
For self-employed individuals working at least 15 hours per week, there is a favourable option for voluntary unemployment insurance - officially known as "insurance on request". For a small contribution, anyone who has been employed and subject to compulsory insurance for at least twelve months in the last two years can insure themselves against unemployment when starting their own business or becoming self-employed. Receiving a wage replacement benefit, such as unemployment benefit, is also accepted as a prerequisite, regardless of the duration.
However, founders must decide quickly on voluntary continued insurance, as it is only possible within three months of starting self-employment.
The monthly contribution to voluntary unemployment insurance is based on the full reference value of social insurance. The reference value in 2021 is 3.290 Euro/month (2020: 3.185 Euro/month). The reference value (East) is 3.115 Euro/month (2020: 3.010 Euro/month). This results in contributions from 2021 of 78.96 Euro (West) or 74.76 Euro (East). There is a special regulation for founders (§ 345b, § 434w SGB III). Accordingly, they generally pay only half the contribution until the end of the first calendar year after starting self-employment.
If the business idea fails and the founder loses their income or gives up their business, they receive benefits from unemployment insurance.
The amount of unemployment benefit is usually based on the gross salary earned before unemployment. In the case of voluntary insurance, the previous employment income subject to insurance as an employee is also used if you were employed and subject to insurance for at least 150 days in the two years before applying for unemployment benefit. However, if no 150 days with contribution periods can be proven in the two years before unemployment, unemployment benefit I is based on a fictitious income. The amount of this fictitious income is determined on a flat-rate basis according to professional qualifications. The qualification required for a job to which the employment agency's placement efforts are primarily directed is decisive.
In 2017, compulsory insurance in unemployment insurance was introduced for all carers - not just for relatives (§ 26 Abs. 2b SGB III):
- Persons who leave employment to care for relatives in need of care with care level 2 to 5 are subject to compulsory insurance.
- The prerequisite is that the carer provides care for at least ten hours per week, spread over at least two days a week.
- Another prerequisite is that the carer was subject to compulsory employment promotion insurance (as an employee) or was entitled to a current wage replacement benefit for employment promotion (unemployment benefit) immediately before starting the care activity.
- The contributions are paid solely by the care funds for the entire duration of the care activity.
For persons subject to insurance as carers, an income of 50 percent of the monthly reference value is considered as income subject to contributions; the reference value for the accession area is decisive if the place of work is in the accession area. The reference value in pension and unemployment insurance is 3.290 Euro per month in the old federal states and 3.115 Euro in the new federal states. The contribution rate in unemployment insurance is 2.4 percent in 2021 (§ 345 Nr. 8 SGB III since 01.01.2017).
Since 01.08.2016, parents who take parental leave according to § 15 BEEG after the child's third year can also voluntarily insure themselves in unemployment insurance (§ 28a Abs. 1 Nr. 4 SGB III).
(2021): How can I take out voluntary unemployment insurance?
