Germany Plans Tighter Parental Leave Rules to Cut Costs and Encourage Equal Parenting
Veröffentlicht: 07.07.2026 um 10:57 Uhr, Redaktion boerse-global.de
Only 45 percent of women and 42 percent of men in Germany support a fully equal split of childcare leave, according to a 2025 Bertelsmann Foundation survey. That statistic sits at the heart of a controversy now swirling around the federal government’s planned overhaul of the country’s parental allowance system — a reform aimed simultaneously at saving money and reshaping how families share caregiving.
The draft bill, authored by Family Minister Karin Prien (CDU) and currently circulating among ministries for approval, would trim the maximum benefit period from 14 to 12 months when both parents take leave. At the same time, the requirement for each partner’s share would stiffen: each parent must take at least three months, up from two months under current rules.
Single parents are exempt from the shorter ceiling and can still claim the full 12 months of standard parental allowance.
Monthly payments, however, would increase. The minimum benefit rises from €300 to €330, and the maximum from €1,800 to €1,900. The calculation basis — 65 percent of net income — remains unchanged. The government expects the reforms to generate annual savings of roughly €500 million.
The tightening comes as total expenditure on the benefit swells. In 2025, 1.61 million people in Germany — 1.19 million women and about 417,000 men — received parental allowance, costing the state €7.1 billion. The income threshold of €175,000, which took effect on April 1, 2025, stays in place.
Alongside the parental leave changes, the draft also revises the Maternity Protection Act. Postpartum employment prohibitions would be capped at 12 months.
The plans have drawn immediate pushback. Organisations including the German Women’s Council and the Family Forum have voiced criticism, arguing the reforms could pressure families into shorter leave periods or penalise those who cannot split care equally. The bill now moves to interministerial coordination before heading to parliament.
