🤝 Care benefits and care allowance

With a recognised care level you are entitled, depending on the form of care chosen, to care allowance, care benefits in kind or a combination, plus supplementary relief benefits.

care allowance (Pflegegeld) care benefit in kind (Pflegesachleistung) relief amount (Entlastungsbetrag) respite care (Verhinderungspflege) short-term care (Kurzzeitpflege) 37 SGB XI

In brief

If care at home is provided by relatives or close persons, the Pflegekasse pays care allowance (Pflegegeld). If an outpatient care service is used, the fund instead covers care benefits in kind (Pflegesachleistungen); the two can also be combined. In addition there is a monthly relief amount (Entlastungsbetrag) for everyday support services, as well as benefits for respite care (Verhinderungspflege) and short-term care (Kurzzeitpflege) if the main carer is unavailable.

Step by step

Choose the form of careDecide together with the Pflegekasse whether care allowance, care benefit in kind or a combination of both suits the situation.
Attend advisory visitsIf you receive care allowance, regular advisory visits are mandatory; their frequency depends on the care level.
Use the relief amountUse the monthly relief amount for qualified everyday support, care services or domestic help.
Apply for respite care or short-term careIf the carer is temporarily unavailable (holiday, illness), respite care or short-term care can be applied for.

Deadlines

every six months (care levels 1–3) / every three months (care levels 4–5)

Obligation to attend advisory visits when receiving care allowance§ 37 Abs. 3 SGB XI

€131/month

Relief amount since 1.1.2025 (previously €125, increase of 4.5% through the Care Support and Relief Act (Pflegeunterstützungs- und -entlastungsgesetz))§ 45b SGB XI

Watch out – common mistakes

Care allowance is paid only for care at home by relatives or other close persons, not for full inpatient accommodation.
Unused relief amount in principle lapses at the end of the year, but can still be used until 30 June of the following year.
If the mandatory advisory visits are missed while receiving care allowance, the Pflegekasse may reduce or stop the care allowance.

In depth · legal basis, figures and practice – for advisers and professionals

Care allowance and care benefit in kind (§§ 36, 37 SGB XI)

The amount of care allowance and care benefit in kind is graded by care level and was increased by 4.5% on 1 January 2025 under the Care Support and Relief Act (PUEG). The exact amounts for care levels 2 to 5 researched as of this page's editorial deadline are given in the references; since a further periodic indexation is provided for 2028 under the PUEG, amounts should be checked with the Pflegekasse or the GKV-Spitzenverband (National Association of Statutory Health Insurance Funds) before any binding statement in an individual case.

Relief amount (§ 45b SGB XI)

All persons with a recognised care level, regardless of the form of care chosen, are entitled to a monthly relief amount of €131 (as of 1.1.2025) for qualified everyday support services.

Respite care and short-term care (§§ 39, 42 SGB XI)

Since the PUEG reform, the budgets for respite care and short-term care for care levels 2 to 5 have been gradually merged or made more flexible. The exact amount of the joint annual budget as of 1.7.2025 could not be conclusively checked against an official primary source in this research and is therefore deliberately not quantified here. A six-month prior care period circulating in older sources as a requirement for respite care could not be confirmed in the current statutory text and should be queried with the Pflegekasse before any binding statement.

Who is responsible

Pflegekasse at the health insurer

Quick questions

Worum geht es bei „Care benefits and care allowance“?

With a recognised care level you are entitled, depending on the form of care chosen, to care allowance, care benefits in kind or a combination, plus supplementary relief benefits.

Which deadlines and figures matter?

every six months (care levels 1–3) / every three months (care levels 4–5): Obligation to attend advisory visits when receiving care allowance (§ 37 Abs. 3 SGB XI)
€131/month: Relief amount since 1.1.2025 (previously €125, increase of 4.5% through the Care Support and Relief Act (Pflegeunterstützungs- und -entlastungsgesetz)) (§ 45b SGB XI)

What should I do first?

Choose the form of care: Decide together with the Pflegekasse whether care allowance, care benefit in kind or a combination of both suits the situation.
Attend advisory visits: If you receive care allowance, regular advisory visits are mandatory; their frequency depends on the care level.
Use the relief amount: Use the monthly relief amount for qualified everyday support, care services or domestic help.

What do I need to watch out for?

Care allowance is paid only for care at home by relatives or other close persons, not for full inpatient accommodation.
Unused relief amount in principle lapses at the end of the year, but can still be used until 30 June of the following year.
If the mandatory advisory visits are missed while receiving care allowance, the Pflegekasse may reduce or stop the care allowance.

Evidence

§§ 36, 37, 39, 42, 45b SGB XI (gesetze-im-internet.de)
Pflegeunterstützungs- und -entlastungsgesetz – PUEG (BGBl. 2023 I Nr. 155)
Benefit amounts as of 1.1.2025: researched according to available sources, not individually re-verified officially for Sept. 2026 – cross-check with the Pflegekasse

As of

As of: September 2026 · Sources and method

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