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Emergency

Maternity benefit: money during the protection periods

Around the birth you may not work during the protection periods, but you are not left without money: during maternity protection there is maternity benefit, which is usually topped up by an employer supplement to your previous net salary.

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Your chances of getting your money back

For the protection periods (as a rule 6 weeks before and 8 weeks after the birth) you receive maternity benefit. Those with statutory insurance get it from their health insurer; the employer pays a top-up so that in the end you usually receive your previous net pay (§ 19 ff. MuSchG).
Even those who are not themselves a member of a statutory fund with a sickness-benefit entitlement (for example, privately or family-insured) can receive a (limited) maternity benefit, the routes differ.

What you should do now

  1. 1

    1. Obtain a certificate

    Have the doctor or midwife certify the expected due date.

  2. 2

    2. Apply at the health insurer

    Apply for maternity benefit at your statutory health insurer and submit the certificate.

  3. 3

    3. Inform the employer

    Notify the employer of the maternity protection so that it pays the top-up to the maternity benefit.

  4. 4

    4. Check special cases

    Privately or family-insured? Then the (limited) maternity benefit runs partly through the Federal Office for Social Security, ask specifically.

Frequently asked questions

Who pays the maternity benefit?

For those with statutory insurance and an entitlement to sickness benefit, the health insurer pays the maternity benefit (up to a maximum amount per day), and the employer tops it up to your previous net pay. For privately or family-insured women, there is sometimes a limited maternity benefit through the Federal Office for Social Security.

How long do I receive maternity benefit?

Generally for the protection periods: as a rule six weeks before and eight weeks after the birth (for premature and multiple births, the period after the birth is extended). During this time you may not work, or only to a limited extent, and are financially secured.

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General information for self-help, not legal advice (RDG). In case of a high loss or uncertainty: contact a consumer advice center or a lawyer.