Bürgergeld Rejected Because Income Is Allegedly Too High

Q: What is the difference between this rejection page and "income wrongly counted"?

This page applies if your initial application (or continuation application) was rejected entirely because the Jobcenter compared needs and income overall and concluded "needs covered". Our sister page einkommen-falsch-angerechnet deals with running notices in which Bürgergeld has been granted but income is set incorrectly within the calculation. The legal bases overlap, but the angle of attack is different.

Q: Will I receive money during the objection?

For rejection notices, the objection generally has no suspensive effect - the Jobcenter does not automatically pay. If rent and living costs are acutely at risk, additionally file an urgent application (Eilantrag) at the Sozialgericht under § 86b Abs. 2 SGG. The proceedings are free of charge and can lead to provisional benefits within a few weeks.

Q: What if the objection deadline has already expired?

Then the review request under § 44 SGB X applies. For obvious calculation errors you can demand a recalculation retroactively for up to one year (in certain constellations up to four years). This is more burdensome than an objection - but often worthwhile.

You filed an initial application for Bürgergeld - and you receive a rejection. The reason: your income covers your needs. For many families this is a shock, because they cannot make it through the month with the money they have. The good news: rejections based on income very often rest on calculation errors that can be challenged with a formal objection (Widerspruch).

The Most Important Points in 30 Seconds

The Jobcenter determines your needs (Bedarf) (standard need plus additional needs plus housing costs) and subtracts your adjusted net income (bereinigtes Einkommen) from it.
Only if income fully covers the needs may the application be rejected (§ 7, § 19, § 11 SGB II).
Only net income after deduction of all allowances counts (§ 11b SGB II).
Within the household community (Bedarfsgemeinschaft, BG) - all persons whose income is calculated jointly - every employed person has their own allowances.
One-time receipts such as a tax refund or severance pay must be spread over six months (§ 11 Abs. 3 SGB II).
Objection deadline: one month from receipt of the notice (§ 84 SGG).

We review your decision within 24 hours. Free and non-binding.

Why Does This Happen?

For every initial application the Jobcenter performs a so-called needs calculation (Bedarfsberechnung). This is essentially an arithmetic exercise with two sides: on one side stands the needs (Bedarf) of the household community (Bedarfsgemeinschaft), on the other the countable income. If needs are higher, there is Bürgergeld - at least topping-up. If income is higher, the application is rejected.

The problem: this calculation is rarely carried through cleanly inside the Jobcenter. Typical sources of error are gross-versus-net mix-ups, forgotten work-related expenses, incorrectly applied allowances, child benefit (Kindergeld) counted twice, or a one-time receipt that was not spread over six months. In a top-up family, several errors quickly accumulate.

Example: the Familie Kurz from Duisburg. Father (full-time warehouse worker, 2,400 EUR gross), mother (450-Euro mini-job), three children (4, 8, 12 years old). Monthly rent including utilities 1,180 EUR. The needs of this five-person family in 2025 amount to roughly 2,710 EUR (standard needs) + 1,180 EUR (housing costs / Kosten der Unterkunft, KdU) = around 3,890 EUR. The Jobcenter rejects the application and writes: "Your income exceeds your needs." But it counts the father's full gross wage of 2,400 EUR, adds the mini-job, adds child benefit for three children - and forgets work-related expenses, the insurance flat rate and the earned-income allowance (Erwerbstätigenfreibetrag). This produces a paper income of almost 4,000 EUR. After a correct calculation, the family is actually left with only around 2,350 EUR adjusted income - the rejection is unlawful, and the entitlement is well above 1,500 EUR per month.

Such errors are not malice but system routine. Mass processing, outdated software, caseworkers with high case loads - and an income calculation that is legally more demanding than many caseworkers believe.

Your Concrete Rights

1. Right to a correct needs calculation (§ 19 SGB II). The Jobcenter must determine the needs of your household community (Bedarfsgemeinschaft) in full: standard need (Regelbedarf) under § 20 SGB II, additional needs (Mehrbedarf) under § 21 SGB II (e.g. single parents, pregnancy, hot water), and housing costs (Kosten der Unterkunft, KdU) under § 22 SGB II. If a position is missing, the calculation is faulty.

2. Only net income counts (§ 11b SGB II). From gross wages the following are deducted: taxes, mandatory social insurance, the work-related-expenses flat rate of 15.33 EUR, the insurance flat rate of 30 EUR, retirement-provision contributions and - for earned income - the earned-income allowance (Erwerbstätigenfreibetrag).

3. Earned-income allowance (§ 11b Abs. 3 SGB II). Above 100 EUR there is a tiered allowance: 20% between 100 EUR and 1,000 EUR, 30% between 520 EUR and 1,000 EUR with children in the household, 10% between 1,000 EUR and 1,200 EUR (with children up to 1,500 EUR). This staircase is regularly overlooked or misapplied in rejection notices.

4. Partner's income with their own allowances (§ 9 Abs. 2 SGB II). Every employed person in the household community has their own deduction and allowance amounts. The Jobcenter is not allowed to lump the partner's gross income together - the partner's mini-job also brings its own 100 EUR base allowance plus the 20% staircase.

5. Child benefit counts at the child, not at the parents (§ 11 Abs. 1 Satz 5 SGB II). Child benefit (Kindergeld) is attributed to the child as income, to the extent it is needed to cover the child's own needs. If the child's needs are not exhausted, the surplus "moves" to the parents. A blanket double-counting (once at the parent, once at the child) is impermissible.

6. Spread one-time receipts (§ 11 Abs. 3 SGB II). Tax refund, severance, inheritance, back-payment: these one-time amounts must not be counted in a single month but must be distributed over six months. A rejection with the argument "you just received 3,000 EUR tax refund" is therefore wrong in the vast majority of cases.

7. Right to object within one month (§ 84 SGG). You may file an informal objection (Widerspruch) against any rejection notice. One sentence is enough to preserve the deadline. The reasoning can be added later.

Current Case Law

The Bundessozialgericht has repeatedly emphasised that income offsetting under §§ 11 ff. SGB II must be carried out strictly net. A blanket counting of gross wages is incompatible with the income-determination rules; all deduction amounts are to be considered, even if the applicant does not expressly invoke them ([URTEIL-REFERENZ]).

On the distribution of one-time receipts, the social courts have set out clear guidelines: a one-time receipt that would only exceed the needs in one month must not knock the entitlement "to zero" in one stroke. Instead, it must be distributed over at least six months in order to ensure ongoing securing of needs ([URTEIL-REFERENZ]).

There is also settled case law on horizontal needs calculation within the household community: income is to be allocated between members in proportion to their individual needs, not lumped onto one parent. Child benefit is to be attributed primarily to the child and only moves to the parents in case of a surplus ([URTEIL-REFERENZ]).

How to Proceed Now

1. Secure the date of receipt. Check the envelope, Postident or P.O. box entry. From that day the one-month deadline for the objection runs. For delivery by ordinary letter, the three-day fiction applies from posting.

2. Find the calculation sheet. The needs-calculation appendix is usually on the last pages of the rejection notice. There you will find for each member of the household community a needs line and an income line.

3. Recalculate the needs. Standard needs 2025: 563 EUR (single person or head of household), 506 EUR (partner), 471 EUR (adolescents 14-17), 390 EUR (children 6-13), 357 EUR (children 0-5). Add the additional needs (hot water approx. 2.3%, single parents up to 60%). And the actual rent including utilities, if reasonable. Together this is your family's needs.

4. Adjust income step by step. Per employed person: gross to net, minus 100 EUR base allowance, minus insurance flat rate (if not already included in the base allowance), minus earned-income allowance per the staircase. The result is the countable income.

5. Check child benefit at the child. Per child: are the child's needs already covered by child benefit, child supplement and maintenance? Only the surplus moves to the parents.

6. File the objection - immediately. Short letter to the Jobcenter: "I hereby object to the notice of [date]. Reasons to follow within four weeks." Send by registered letter (Einwurf-Einschreiben) or in person with a stamp.

7. Apply for provisional benefits. In parallel with the objection you may file an urgent application (Eilantrag) at the Sozialgericht under § 86b Abs. 2 SGG if rent and living expenses are acutely at risk. The court often decides within a few weeks.

Avoid Typical Mistakes

Swallowing gross-counting. When figures suddenly appear in the notice that are suspiciously close to gross income, that is almost never correct. Always compare with the payroll slip (payout amount).
"Not noticing" work-related expenses and flat rates. The 15.33 EUR work-related-expenses flat rate and the 30 EUR insurance flat rate are deducted automatically. If they are missing in the notice, the Jobcenter is calculating too high.
Letting one-time payments go through in full. A tax refund or severance pay in the application month only tips the calculation if the Jobcenter violates the six-month rule. That is challengeable.
Counting child benefit twice. Child benefit at the parent and at the child at the same time? That is a classic calculation error. Child benefit belongs first to the child.
Letting the objection deadline pass. Even if the calculation does not suit you: without a timely objection, the notice becomes legally binding. A review request under § 44 SGB X is later possible, but more burdensome.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between this rejection page and "income wrongly counted"?

This page applies if your initial application (or continuation application) was rejected entirely because the Jobcenter compared needs and income overall and concluded "needs covered". Our sister page einkommen-falsch-angerechnet deals with running notices in which Bürgergeld has been granted but income is set incorrectly within the calculation. The legal bases overlap, but the angle of attack is different.

My partner earns too much - will there still be Bürgergeld?

Often yes. If there are children in the household community, the overall needs are high while the partner has their own allowances. Typical top-up constellation: full-time wage from the partner, mini-job from the other partner, two or three children - there is almost always a residual entitlement. Check whether the partner's gross wage was correctly converted to net and adjusted by the earned-income allowances.

The Jobcenter counts a tax refund in full in the month of receipt. Is that allowed?

No, generally not. Under § 11 Abs. 3 SGB II, one-time receipts that exceed the monthly need must be distributed over six months. A tax refund of 3,000 EUR is therefore counted at 500 EUR per month, not at 3,000 EUR in the month it lands. More on this on our sister page einmalige-einnahmen-falsch-verteilt.

Is my child benefit being counted twice?

It happens, but it is a calculation error. Child benefit is, under § 11 Abs. 1 Satz 5 SGB II, the child's income, to the extent it is needed for the child's needs. Only the surplus moves to the parents. If the Jobcenter counts the child benefit blanket at the parent and additionally sets the child's needs without the child benefit credit, that is wrong. Details on kindergeld-falsch-als-einkommen.

Can work-related expenses above the flat rate be claimed?

Yes. Anyone with higher actual work-related expenses - such as commuting (0.20 EUR/km one-way), tools, work clothing - may claim them instead of the flat rate. This is particularly relevant for commuters. More on freibetraege-nicht-korrekt and erwerbstaetigenfreibetrag-falsch.

Will I receive money during the objection?

For rejection notices, the objection generally has no suspensive effect - the Jobcenter does not automatically pay. If rent and living costs are acutely at risk, additionally file an urgent application (Eilantrag) at the Sozialgericht under § 86b Abs. 2 SGG. The proceedings are free of charge and can lead to provisional benefits within a few weeks.

What if the objection deadline has already expired?

Then the review request under § 44 SGB X applies. For obvious calculation errors you can demand a recalculation retroactively for up to one year (in certain constellations up to four years). This is more burdensome than an objection - but often worthwhile.

Have Your Decision Reviewed Now

A rejection notice (Ablehnungsbescheid) based on income is rarely the last word. The needs calculation is granular, the deduction items hidden, and top-up constellations with children and partner income are particularly error-prone. Anyone who cannot follow the calculation should have it checked by an expert - within the one-month deadline. It often turns out that not too much income but too little arithmetic competence was the reason for the rejection.

We review your decision within 24 hours. Free and non-binding.