Bürgergeld Denied Because of Assets: When the Jobcenter Calculates the Allowance Too Tightly

You filed your first Bürgergeld application and the rejection notice is in the mailbox: "Application denied - usable assets above the protection threshold." Before you spend down your savings or cancel your Riester pension: in very many cases this calculation is wrong. The first year is covered by a generous grace period (Karenzzeit) with 40,000 EUR of protected assets (Schonvermögen), and retirement provisions, your car, your home and household goods are protected on top of that.

The Most Important Points in 30 Seconds

  • During the grace period (Karenzzeit) (the first 12 months of receiving Bürgergeld, § 12 Abs. 4 SGB II), 40,000 EUR for the first person and 15,000 EUR for each additional person in the household community (Bedarfsgemeinschaft, BG) are protected.
  • After the grace period (§ 12 Abs. 2 Nr. 1 SGB II): 15,000 EUR per person plus an additional retirement provision allowance (Altersvorsorge-Freibetrag) under § 12 Abs. 2 Nr. 3 SGB II.
  • Permanently protected and not counted as assets: state-subsidised Riester or Rürup contracts, an appropriate motor vehicle, a self-occupied home, household goods, funeral provision.
  • The notice must specifically state which assets were counted at which value - blanket rejections are open to challenge.
  • Objection deadline: one month from receipt of the notice (§ 84 SGG). No suspensive effect - in case of acute hardship, file an urgent application as well.

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

Why Does This Happen?

With the 2023 Bürgergeld reform, the asset assessment was fundamentally simplified. The legislator wanted to make sure that people who only need help temporarily do not immediately lose their savings. In administrative practice, however, this reform has not yet arrived everywhere. Caseworkers occasionally fall back on old Hartz IV logic and add protected assets to the count.

The most common error in the initial application (Erstantrag): the grace period is simply overlooked. Instead of the 40,000 EUR protected assets, the Jobcenter only applies the regular 15,000 EUR. Anyone with 25,000 EUR in a savings account then receives a rejection - even though everything would be in the green during the first year.

Example From Practice

Frau Hartl, 52 years old, from Augsburg, applies for Bürgergeld for the first time after her employer's business was wound up. She lives alone, has 55,000 EUR in a call deposit account (severance plus an old reserve), a Riester contract with a surrender value of 18,000 EUR and drives a 9-year-old estate car (current value approx. 4,800 EUR). The Jobcenter rejects: "Usable assets 73,800 EUR - far above the threshold."

Calculated correctly, the picture is different. The Riester contract is fully protected under § 12 Abs. 2 Nr. 2 SGB II. The car is below the guideline value and is also protected. That leaves 55,000 EUR in bank deposits. Of this, 40,000 EUR are protected during the grace period. On top of that, the retirement provision allowance applies. The blanket rejection does not stand up to closer review.

Your Rights in Concrete Terms

1. Grace-period protected assets (§ 12 Abs. 4 SGB II). During the first 12 months of receiving Bürgergeld for the first time, 40,000 EUR for the first person and 15,000 EUR for each additional person in the household community apply. Example: a single parent with two children = 40,000 EUR + 15,000 EUR + 15,000 EUR = 70,000 EUR of protected assets.

2. Basic allowance after the grace period (§ 12 Abs. 2 Nr. 1 SGB II). From month 13 onwards, 15,000 EUR per person in the household community apply - regardless of age.

3. Retirement provision allowance (§ 12 Abs. 2 Nr. 3 SGB II). In addition to the basic allowance, the law protects further retirement reserves where early liquidation would be a particular hardship - this also applies to non-subsidised reserves that are clearly intended for retirement.

4. Subsidised retirement provision permanently protected (§ 12 Abs. 2 Nr. 2 SGB II). Riester and Rürup contracts are - if state-subsidised - fully protected regardless of their value. Likewise protected: life insurance policies with a contractually agreed liquidation exclusion (Verwertungsausschluss).

5. Appropriate motor vehicle (§ 12 Abs. 1 Nr. 2 SGB II). One car per person capable of work is protected. Guideline: up to approx. 7,500 EUR market value (current value). No rigid cap - higher-value vehicles may be appropriate in individual cases.

6. Self-occupied property (§ 12 Abs. 1 Nr. 5 SGB II). A self-occupied apartment or house of appropriate size is protected. Orientation: approx. 130 sqm for an apartment or approx. 140 sqm for a house - depending on household size and the individual case.

7. Household goods (§ 12 Abs. 1 Nr. 1 SGB II). Furniture, household appliances, clothes, books - the entire household contents do not count as assets. Even a single item of value (an heirloom, a collection) is not automatically open to attack.

8. Funeral provision. Reasonable funeral provision contracts (trust accounts, pure death benefit insurance) are protected as a purpose-bound reserve in established administrative practice.

9. Objection and access to the file (§ 84 SGG, § 25 SGB X). You can file a free objection against any rejection notice within one month. You may inspect the file and contest the assessment item by item.

Current Case Law

The Bundessozialgericht has repeatedly confirmed that retirement provisions enjoy special protection in the basic security system. For life insurance policies with a liquidation exclusion (Verwertungsausschluss), the line is clear: if it is contractually agreed that the insurance will only be paid out on retirement, it counts as protected retirement assets and is left out of the means test. [URTEIL-REFERENZ]

On the appropriate size of a self-occupied property, the social courts have developed a differentiated line. What matters is not the square metres alone, but an overall view of household size, regional market and realisability. Properties above the guideline values can also remain protected if division or sale is unreasonable. [URTEIL-REFERENZ]

On the market value of a motor vehicle: what counts is the actual resale value on the reference date, not the new price. A vehicle needed for the commute to work or for caring for relatives carries particular weight in the appropriateness test.

What To Do Now

1. Read the notice and note the date of receipt. From this day on the one-month deadline runs. In case of doubt the three-day fiction from the date of posting applies.

2. Prepare an asset statement. List every item with its value as of the application reference date: current account, call deposit, savings book, cash, life insurance (surrender value!), Riester, Rürup, car (current value), property, funeral provision. Household goods stay out.

3. Mark the protected assets. Anything that falls under § 12 Abs. 1 or Abs. 2 SGB II is not counted: Riester, Rürup, life insurance with liquidation exclusion, an appropriate car, self-occupied property, funeral provision.

4. Check the allowance. First application = grace period = 40,000 EUR for the first person + 15,000 EUR for each further person. Only the surplus over the allowance could ever be drawn on.

5. File the objection - in writing, within the deadline. Two lines are enough: "I hereby file an objection against the notice of [date], received on [date]. Reasons to follow." By recorded delivery or in person with a stamped receipt.

6. Submit the reasoning with evidence. Account statements as of the reference date, value notification for the Riester or Rürup contract, subsidy notice, vehicle registration plus a DAT or Schwacke valuation, land register extract, funeral provision contract. Refer to § 12 Abs. 4 SGB II (grace period).

7. In case of acute hardship: urgent application. If the rent is at risk, file an urgent application under § 86b Abs. 2 SGG with the social court in parallel. Free of charge, no lawyer required.

Typical Mistakes To Avoid

  • Grace period ignored. In the initial application, 40,000 EUR apply for the first person, not 15,000 EUR. This confusion is by far the most common rejection ground that can be overturned in the objection procedure.

  • Riester miscalculated. State-subsidised Riester and Rürup contracts are protected regardless of their value. Even 60,000 EUR in a Riester contract may not be counted as usable assets by the Jobcenter. If it counts the value anyway, a subsidy certificate is enough for the objection.

  • Life insurance: surrender value vs. current value. For capital life insurance, the surrender value as of the reference date counts - that is, what you would receive today. Jobcenters sometimes apply the maturity benefit or the sum of the contributions paid in. That distorts assets upwards. Obtain a current value notification from the insurer.

  • Household goods treated as assets. All household contents - furniture, appliances, clothing, books - are protected. Even a valuable heirloom (grandmother's jewellery, a collection) cannot be classified as usable assets without further ado. If the Jobcenter calculates here, the objection has very good prospects.

  • No protection check for individual cases. For property, car and funeral provision, appropriateness is always a question of the individual case. Anyone rejected on a blanket basis without the Jobcenter having looked at occupational use of the car, household size for the property or the purpose-binding of the funeral provision has a clear point of attack.

Frequently Asked Questions

I am applying for Bürgergeld for the first time and have 35,000 EUR in a savings account. Will I receive anything at all?

Yes. During the grace period, a protected asset value of 40,000 EUR applies to you as a single person. Your 35,000 EUR are below that. You do not have to spend down or liquidate the money before receiving Bürgergeld. Submit account statements as of the application date and refer to § 12 Abs. 4 SGB II. If the Jobcenter rejects nonetheless, this is a textbook objection case.

We are a family with two children. How much may we have in assets during the grace period?

The allowance is calculated per person: 40,000 EUR for the first person + 15,000 EUR for each further person. With two adults and two children that is 40,000 EUR + 3 x 15,000 EUR = 85,000 EUR. The total assets are added together - regardless of whether they are in your account or your partner's.

I inherited a small condominium and live in it myself. Will I lose it?

No. A self-occupied condominium of appropriate size is protected under § 12 Abs. 1 Nr. 5 SGB II. It does not count as usable assets and does not have to be sold or mortgaged - not even during the grace period. If the Jobcenter still applies a value, object with reference to your own use.

How does this page differ from "Assets wrongly counted"?

This page deals with the rejection of your initial application - you have not yet received any benefits. The sister page Assets wrongly counted addresses situations in which you are already receiving benefits and the Jobcenter reassesses your assets in the context of a withdrawal or ongoing review. The substantive legal position (§ 12 SGB II) is similar - the procedural situation differs.

What about my funeral provision - does that count as assets?

Reasonable funeral provision (a trust account with an undertaker, pure death benefit insurance with no surrender value) is protected as a purpose-bound reserve. As an orientation, amounts in the low four-digit range apply. If your funeral provision is counted nonetheless, present the contract and refer to its purpose-binding.

Can I still file an objection after the one-month deadline has expired?

In principle no - the one-month deadline is a strict cut-off. But: for notices that are obviously unlawful, there is the review application under § 44 SGB X. It can be filed up to one year retrospectively and works particularly well for clear calculation errors regarding assets.

Have Your Notice Reviewed Now

A rejected initial application due to "excessive assets" is not the end of the road. In the vast majority of cases the Jobcenter's calculation is open to attack - the grace period was overlooked, the Riester contract assessed wrongly, or the funeral provision simply added in. The one-month deadline runs from the day the notice landed in your mailbox.

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

Just upload the notice. We will tell you whether your assets were assessed correctly - or whether an objection is worthwhile.