Germany’s parliament has voted to abolish the controversial Bürgergeld welfare scheme and replace it with a new basic income support system, known as Grundsicherung, in a move the government says will strengthen work incentives and tighten eligibility rules.
The Bundestag approved the reform on Thursday, with 321 votes in favour.
The measure was backed by the governing coalition of the centre-right CDU/CSU bloc and the Social Democratic Party (SPD). The new system is due to take effect in July and will affect more than five million people.
The Bürgergeld, a form of jobseekers’ allowance introduced under the previous leftist government, has faced criticism from opponents who argue it is too costly, overly bureaucratic, and too lenient toward claimants who refuse work. The right-wing AfD has labelled the policy “migrant money.”
Under the new system, benefit levels will remain unchanged: single claimants will receive €563 per month, partners €506 each, and children between €357 and €471 depending on age. Reasonable housing and heating costs will still be covered.
However, several rules will become stricter. The previous 12-month grace period allowing claimants to remain in expensive or oversized accommodation will largely be abolished, meaning recipients may have to move sooner if their housing costs exceed local limits.
Sanctions will also be tougher. Job centres will be able to reduce benefits by up to 30% for missed appointments or refusal to apply for jobs or training. Claimants who miss three appointments could lose payments entirely, including housing support in some cases.
During a debate ahead of the vote, CDU general secretary Carsten Linnemann said that the welfare system had “got somewhat out of balance.” The reform, he said, would restore fairness by reinforcing the principle of encouraging and requiring people to seek employment.
However, the changes have drawn criticism from both the far-left and the right. Green Party MP Timon Dzienus denounced the new policy, saying the CDU was constantly blaming individual groups within society for the country’s problems, in this case welfare recipients.
AfD MP René Springer said the reform amounted to only a minor correction to a failed system. He argued that immigration into Germany’s welfare system remained a central problem and called for stricter access rules, including limiting benefits primarily to German citizens.
Recently released figures show that the number of foreign Bürgergeld recipients who had never worked in Germany rose from around 621,000 in 2016 to 891,000 in 2024. While the number of German citizens receiving benefits has declined sharply in recent years, the number of foreign recipients has risen to almost 1.9 million.
One Response
These People are illiterate, have no skills, are uncivilized and serve no purpose in life. They can’t even feed themselves. They sustain themselves by stealing and committing violence. They threaten Civilization and influence our Democracy. So we let them vote and feed them to sweep the problem under the rug. We all know this but nobody has the guts to do something about it.