Sources and method – Single Mothers
Why "Bürgergeld" and "Grundsicherungsgeld" appear side by side here
On 1 July 2026 the Thirteenth Act Amending the Second Book of the Social Code and Other Acts came into force (BGBl. 2026 I Nr. 107, issued in Bonn, 22 April 2026). It renamed the benefit "Bürgergeld" as "Grundsicherungsgeld". Because many forms, notices and everyday speech still use "Bürgergeld" and people affected search with both terms, these pages give both names side by side. Details on the other rules changed as of 1 July 2026 (priority of placement, sanctions model, graduated protected assets) can be found in this portal's guide for unemployed people.
Sources
- Gesetze im Internet (gesetze-im-internet.de), Federal Ministry of Justice and Federal Office of Justice, retrieved September 2026: consolidated versions of BGB (esp. §§ 1601, 1605, 1606, 1612a, 1613, 1626, 1626a, 1671, 1684, 1712, 1713, 195, 199, 553, 839), UVG (§§ 1, 2, 7, 9), EStG (§ 24b), BKGG (§ 6a), SGB II (§§ 7, 9, 10, 11, 12a, 20, 21), SGB VIII (§§ 24, 28, 60), SGB V (§ 45), TzBfG (§ 8), BEEG (§§ 15, 16, 18), ZPO (§§ 850c, 850d), AGG (§ 19), WoGG (§ 19), KSchG (§ 1), InsO (§ 287), SGB I (§ 60), GG (Art. 34). Basis for all sections cited in the text.
- Bundesgesetzblatt: BGBl. 2026 I Nr. 107, Thirteenth Act Amending the Second Book of the Social Code and Other Acts, issued in Bonn 22 April 2026 (recht.bund.de/bgbl/1/2026/107). Basis for the renaming "Bürgergeld" → "Grundsicherungsgeld" as of 1 July 2026.
- Regelbedarfsstufen-Fortschreibungsverordnung 2026, published in the Federal Law Gazette on 22 October 2025, and publications of the Federal Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs (bmas.de), retrieved September 2026. Basis for the stated standard rate level 1 (€563/month) and the calculated example values for additional needs derived from it.
- Federal Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs (BMAS) and Bundesregierung.de, publications on child benefit, single parent tax relief and child supplement, as of 2026 (bmas.de, bundesregierung.de). Basis for the child benefit and § 24b EStG amounts stated in the text.
- Federal Court of Justice (Bundesgerichtshof), landmark decision of 2020 on official liability claims where no under-3 childcare place is available (BGH, judgments of 20 October 2020, III ZR 25/20 and others), cited from BGH press releases. Basis for the note on a possible official liability claim where the legal entitlement to daycare is violated.
- Hilfetelefon Gewalt gegen Frauen (Violence against Women helpline) (hilfetelefon.de), information on availability and phone number, retrieved September 2026. Basis for the information in the article "Advice and contact points".
Where information is expressly marked as uncertain
For some figures, no direct official primary source with the exact euro amount for September 2026 could be found or independently checked during research. This concerns in particular:
- the exact monthly advance maintenance payment amounts (Unterhaltsvorschuss) by age group of the child for 2026 (§ 2 UVG in conjunction with § 1612a BGB) – the calculation method is established, but the exact euro amount per age group came in the sources checked only from secondary sources not officially verified (see page "Advance maintenance payment");
- the exact needs rates of the Düsseldorf Table 2026 – it is not a legal norm, but a guideline of the Higher Regional Court of Düsseldorf; the figures circulating for 2026 come from several consistent but not officially checked secondary sources (see page "Enforcing child maintenance");
- the exact monthly maximum child supplement amount (Kinderzuschlag) per child (§ 6a Abs. 2 BKGG) – the calculation formula (share of subsistence minimum plus €25 immediate supplement) is set by law, but the euro amount resulting from it for 2026 was not checked against an individual official source (see page "Child supplement");
- the euro amount of the additional needs allowance for single parents under § 21 Abs. 3 SGB II, calculated from the officially confirmed standard rate level 1 (€563) (about €202.68 or at most about €337.80) – the percentages (36%, 12% per child, cap of 60%) are fixed by law and checked, but the own calculation was not additionally compared against an official leaflet (see page "Additional needs allowance for single parents in basic income support");
- whether and in what form the special child sick pay rule for 2026 (increased days under § 45 SGB V) continues from 2027 or reverts to the regular entitlement (see page "Child's illness and time off work");
- the exact income limits for the housing entitlement certificate (Wohnberechtigungsschein) and the amount of municipal daycare parental fees – both are expressly regulated at state or municipal level, there is no nationwide uniform figure (see pages "Finding housing as a single parent" and "Daycare place and childcare");
- the current table of income exempt from attachment under § 850c ZPO for 2026 in its specific euro amounts by number of dependants (see page "Debt and single parents").
In all these cases the relevant topic page states the uncertainty expressly, instead of presenting a figure or assessment as established law.
What this platform does – and what it does not
- Figures, deadlines, amounts and legal bases come from the sources named. Nothing was added that is not supported there. Where a statement could not be reliably verified, this is stated on the relevant page instead of being guessed.
- Values that differ by state and municipality (e.g. housing entitlement certificate income limits, daycare parental fees, priority rules for social housing) are marked as "varies by state/municipality" instead of giving an invented nationwide figure.
- Family and social law remain in flux even after the 2026 reform; courts will have to clarify some new questions first. The information does not replace legal advice in an individual case.
- Deadlines are often short and run from service of the notice or from knowledge. If in doubt, immediately contact an advice centre, the youth welfare office (Jugendamt) or a family law lawyer – see Advice and contact points.