I am hiring someone for the first time
The heart of the matter
- The type of employment decides the route. Mini-job (Minijob) up to €603 a month (2026), midi-job (Midijob) up to €2,000, above that normal employment. You register mini-jobs with the Minijob-Zentrale, all others with the person's health insurance fund (Krankenkasse).
- First the number, then the registration. Businesses need an establishment number (Betriebsnummer) from the Bundesagentur für Arbeit (Federal Employment Agency) before they can register anyone. Private households with a mini-job (including short-term) receive it automatically via the household cheque (Haushaltsscheck).
- Some deadlines run before the first working day. An integration subsidy (Eingliederungszuschuss) must be applied for before hiring. A fixed-term contract must be signed in writing before work begins. In certain sectors, the immediate notification (Sofortmeldung) is due at the latest when work begins.
- The terms must be documented in writing. Even with an oral contract, the Nachweisgesetz (Evidence Act) applies: pay and working time at the latest on the first working day, further details within the first seven days, the rest within one month.
- From day one, minimum wage, leave and protection duties apply. Minimum wage €13.90 (from 2027: €14.60), paid leave and accident insurance also apply in a mini-job and in a private household; the Arbeitsschutzgesetz (Occupational Safety and Health Act) does not apply in a private household.
How the roadmap works. Answer the questions. Your roadmap is built from them. It shows what you should do before the first working day, where to register the person, which deadlines run and which subsidies may come into consideration. The most important point first: employment without registration is undeclared work (Schwarzarbeit), even for a cleaner or a small mini-job. This roadmap is general information and does not replace legal advice.
Your answers are not stored or transmitted; they only appear in your browser's address bar. Anyone who shares the link also shares the answers. Legal position as of November 2026: SGB IV (§ 7a, § 8, § 8a, § 18i, § 20 Abs. 2, § 23, § 28a Abs. 1, 4 und 7, § 28f) with DEÜV § 6; MiLoG with the Fünfte Mindestlohnanpassungsverordnung (€13.90 from 1 January 2026, €14.60 from 1 January 2027; marginal-employment threshold €603 in 2026, €633 in 2027), § 17 MiLoG; NachwG § 2 as amended by the BEG IV (text form since 1 January 2025, not in the sectors of § 2a SchwarzArbG); TzBfG § 14; BGB § 622, § 623; BBiG §§ 11, 20, 36; JArbSchG §§ 8, 32; EStG §§ 35a, 39e, 40a, 41, 41a; SGB VII § 192; AAG § 1; ArbSchG §§ 5, 6, 12; DSGVO Art. 6 Abs. 1 Buchst. b und c, Art. 13, BDSG § 26 (as a legal basis of its own, doubtful after CJEU, judgment of 30.03.2023 – C-34/21); KSchG § 1, § 23; SGB III §§ 74, 88, 89, 324; BAG, decision of 13.09.2022 – 1 ABR 22/21 (duty to record working time; statutory reform in the ArbZG only as a draft).
Your situation
Your roadmap
As of November 2026. The roadmap arranges general information according to your answers. It does not review an individual case, does not replace legal advice and does not assess your dismissal or any deadline as valid, met or missed. Whether an entitlement exists is decided by the responsible office; deadlines and amounts change often – check important details with an advice centre.
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On a decision, deadline, application or responsibility. You get an answer with the matching page, the responsible office and the next step, usually within two working days. No legal advice in individual cases, no sharing of your data.