Child benefit will be paid out automatically in the future

In the future, young parents should receive child benefit automatically without having to apply for it. The Federal Council gave its approval for a corresponding law. It is scheduled to come into force on January 1, 2027. The Bundestag had already passed the law in July.

The prerequisite is that at least one parent lives with the child in Germany and at least one parent works in Germany. According to the justification for the law, this is intended to prevent the German authorities from paying even though another EU state would actually be responsible.

Changeover next year in two stages

The authorities also need to know the parents’ bank account details. The payment should be possible as soon as the child has received a tax identification number. For more complicated child benefit cases, an application must still be submitted.