Reform: How much net will you have left of your salary in 2027?

Are you benefiting from the federal government's reform package, or are you worse off than before? The Handelsblatt shows how the net salary will change in 2027 for singles, married couples and parents.

Berlin, Düsseldorf. What impact will the federal government's planned reform package have on your income? The tax reform and the changes in social security will have a significant impact on the salary receipts in the checking account in 2027.

The financial scientist Frank Hechtner from the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg has calculated for the Handelsblatt what will remain net for citizens after the tax and social reforms.

The editorial team used the data to create the new Handelsblatt reform calculator. This is how you can see how your net salary will develop in 2027: Will you get more or less than before?

This depends on your gross income, the number of children and whether you are married. The calculator takes into account the federal government's tax reform as well as changes in pension, health, nursing care and unemployment insurance. In 2027, for example, the contribution assessment limits will be raised to an exceptionally high extent, meaning that more social security contributions will have to be paid on higher incomes.

Try the Handelsblatt reform calculator to find out whether you will get more or less salary in 2027 than this year.

The data shows: The federal government is not keeping the promise of relief for many people in Germany. While many are relieved by the tax reform, in many cases the higher social security contributions exceed this relief, especially for higher incomes.

But even childless singles are hardly relieved: they only benefit from the reform between a gross monthly income of 1,500 euros and 5,750 euros. Your benefit is between eight and 34 euros per year.

Things are looking better for families. A couple with two children, both of whom earn 4,000 euros each, have 416 euros more. If one partner in the same family earns 6,000 euros and the other 4,000 euros, the increase is still 272 euros.

Unmarried parents also benefit from the reform up to a gross monthly salary of 6,000 euros. Only families with up to two children were taken into account in the data analysis. If you have additional children, your net income will be even higher on average. This is mainly due to the higher child benefit.

Top earners, on the other hand, have to pay significantly more. Economist Hechtner calculates: Anyone who earns 8,850 euros per month will have to pay 1,491 euros more in social contributions in 2027 than before. Despite tax relief, this leads to less net income.

However, Hechtner objects to the data basis: Not every scenario can be covered, especially for lower incomes. Because “various other social transfers could take effect” that influence the net income. In this respect, depending on the social benefits received, the individual net result can differ from the result of the calculator.