Parental contribution

• The biological and adoptive parents with whom the child taking advantage of a care offer lives are liable to pay contributions.

• Single mothers or fathers (In this case, the income of the parent with whom the child lives is decisive. Maintenance payments are relevant to the parental contribution and must be declared and proven)

• Parents who care for their child in a so-called shared custody model (In this case, the income of both parents is decisive)

• Foster parents in full-time care according to §33 SGB VIII, if they are granted a child tax allowance under §32 EStG or receive child benefits.

Please inform your responsible caseworker. (Daycare: Caseworkers; Daycare: Caseworkers)

You can find the due dates in your respective parental contribution notice. The ongoing parental contribution is generally due on the 1st of each month.

The basis for assessing the parental contribution is the actual gross income relevant to the parental contribution earned by the contributors in the calendar year (January 1 to December 31 = annual principle) for which the parental contribution is to be determined.

The calculation of the relevant parental income is based on a legally independent procedure and differs from your taxable income under the income tax return. The following calculation method generally applies:

Annual gross income (excluding child benefits)

• PLUS: tax-free income

• PLUS: other income

• PLUS: state benefits for living expenses

• PLUS: wage replacement benefits

• PLUS: alimony payments

• MINUS: tax-free child allowances from the third child onwards

• MINUS: advertising costs according to the income tax assessment (for contributors who do not submit an income tax return, the applicable advertising cost allowance (currently €1,230.00) applies)

• MINUS: childcare costs according to the income tax assessment (without a tax assessment, the deduction of incurred childcare costs is not possible)       

Since the total gross annual income is decisive in determining the income relevant for parental contributions, this surcharge serves to compensate employees who, due to social insurance obligations, have a higher gross income with comparable net income. This surcharge aims to approximately balance this inequality.  

For preliminary income determination, all relevant documents for the respective year must be submitted by employees (e.g. current payslips, information on expected one-off payments or gross income when resuming employment, etc.).

Self-employed individuals can initially submit the income tax assessment of previous years for unchanged income or a current business management evaluation (BWA) for changed income.

For the final income calculation, the payslips for December as well as the income tax assessment and, if applicable, evidence of other income for the respective year are used. Since the income tax assessment only shows the tax-relevant 'total amount of income,' it is also essential to submit the payslips, as these regularly include an annual statement of all tax-free income in addition to taxable income.      

Self-employed individuals submit a tax assessment for the final income determination.

The submission of income evidence is unnecessary as long as you assign your income to the highest level (income over €121,000).   

Parental contributions are generally based on the actual calendar year income of the liable parties for the year in which the contribution obligation exists. The prerequisite for the final determination of the parental contribution amount is a review and determination in a retroactive process.    

If the actual income is not yet known or reviewed, parental contributions are considered provisionally determined. A change or initial determination of parental contributions is possible within 4 years after the end of the year in which a parental contribution obligation existed. If your income changes, the parental contribution will be adjusted based on the changed income situation for the entire calendar year, regardless of the month in which the income change occurred.    

In the event of current or foreseeable changes in income or family circumstances, please notify us immediately and provide evidence (for income changes, complete and current income statements).

The following groups of people can be exempted from paying parental contributions for the proven duration of their entitlement:

• Recipients of benefits under Social Code II or Social Code XII

• Recipients of benefits under the Asylum Seekers Benefits Act

• Recipients of benefits under the Housing Benefits Act

• Recipients of child allowance under the Federal Child Benefit Act

The obligation to pay contributions for your child ceases if

• Your child has reached the age of four by September 30 of a given year (from the beginning of the same calendar year until school enrollment),

• Your income falls into Income Level 1 (below 19,000 euros),

• You are exempt from the obligation to pay contributions for the documented duration of receiving benefits under SGB II, SGB XII, or AsylBLG, housing allowance, or child allowance,

• Your child is no longer cared for in a publicly funded facility.

• If several children of a family attend childcare (KiTa or child day care) simultaneously, the parental contribution only needs to be paid for the child whose care incurs the highest overall parental contribution (chargeable child). For each second and subsequent child, no parental contribution is required.

• If, in addition to the chargeable child, at least one other child of the family is simultaneously cared for in an OGS, the parental contribution due for the visit to the daycare facility will be reduced by the OGS contribution.

• For the purpose of the sibling exemption regulation, siblings include not only children living in the same household with their biological parents but also half-siblings living in the same household with their biological and non-biological parent (e.g., patchwork family).

• If a child in the family is cared for as a so-called preschool child and is therefore exempt from contributions, no parental contribution is required for the simultaneously cared-for siblings in day care or kindergarten either.

When simultaneously caring for a child in a daycare center (KiTa) and additionally in child day care (TP), the parental contribution is determined based on the total care scope (§ 6 of the parental contribution statute).

The parental contribution for KiTa is determined first. The difference between the KiTa contribution and the parental contribution based on the total care scope is set as the parental contribution for TP.

Parental contributions are public-law costs payable in monthly installments to co-finance the publicly funded (annual) operating costs of the respective daycare. This means that parental contributions are collected as equal monthly installments as an annual contribution.      

The obligation to pay contributions exists regardless of the actual use of the care service and applies to all months in which a care contract exists in whole or in part.

Consequently, parental contributions must also be paid during vacation periods.

Note: The contribution must be paid in full even if the child is not cared for on all days of the month.