Details of employment for children over 18
After completing initial vocational training / first degree, children over the age of 18 are only considered during further training if they are not employed. Employment of up to 20 hours of regular weekly working time or a training employment contract is permissible.
Part-time employment with a monthly wage of less than 450 Euro is also permissible. If several mini-jobs are held at the same time, the total earnings must not exceed 450 Euro per month. The weekly working hours and the number of monthly work assignments are irrelevant.
Temporary employment is also permissible:
Temporary employment is when the employment is limited from the outset to a maximum of 3 months or 70 working days within a calendar year and is not carried out on a professional basis. The three-month period applies as a time limit if the employment is carried out on at least 5 days per week.
For employment of less than 5 days per week, the limit of 70 working days applies. The amount of wages is not limited. Temporary employment can only be carried out alongside other employment if the total does not exceed the 20-hour limit per week.
Note: Please note any existing exceptions in the Corona year 2020. For example, during the period from 01.03. to 31.10.2020, the time limits for seasonal work were extended from 3 months/70 working days to 5 months or 115 working days (§ 115 SGB IV, introduced by the "Social Protection Package Act" of 27.03.2020).
Currently – unrelated and therefore hardly noticed – the time limits for temporary employment in 2021 were extended again with the "Fourth Act to Amend the Sea Fisheries Act" – again in the period from 01.03. to 31.10.2021, but this time only to 4 months or 102 working days (§ 132 SGB IV-new).
The child must also meet the following conditions for you to continue to claim the child allowance:
- was trained for another profession,
- was in a transition period of no more than four months between two training periods, between the start or end of a training period and the start or end of a voluntary service,
- could not start or continue vocational training due to a lack of training place,
- completed a voluntary social or ecological year (Youth Voluntary Service Act), a European / development policy voluntary service, a voluntary service for all generations, an International Youth Voluntary Service, a Federal Voluntary Service or another service abroad (§ 5 Federal Voluntary Service Act).
Note: According to the Federal Fiscal Court, the training and not the employment must be the main focus in order to receive child benefit or the child allowance. This applies at least in cases of so-called multi-stage vocational training, such as a postgraduate course.
(2021): Details of employment for children over 18
