Child support

Familieab 9 J.

Support for minor children in Germany follows the Düsseldorf Table: €482–649/month (minimum support 2025). The payer's personal allowance: €1,450. Half of the child benefit (€127.50) is offset.

Child maintenance (Kindesunterhalt) is the financial contribution of the non-resident parent to the child's living costs in Germany (§1612a BGB).

Minimum maintenance 2025 (Düsseldorf Table, 1st income bracket up to €2,100 net):

• 0–5 years: €482/month
• 6–11 years: €554/month
• 12–17 years: €649/month
• From 18 (own household): €990/month (incl. rent with heating up to €440)

Offsetting child benefit:

• Child benefit 2025: €255/child
• Minors: half (€127.50) is deducted from maintenance
• Adults: the full child benefit is offset

Personal allowance (what the payer may keep at minimum):

• Employed: €1,450/month (incl. €520 rent with heating)
• Not employed: €1,200
• Towards adult children: €1,750

15 income brackets:

The table staggers maintenance up to €11,000 net – those who earn more have to calculate case by case. Bracket 5 (€3,301–3,700): 120% of minimum maintenance. Bracket 10 (€5,501–6,200): 160%.

Shortfall case: if income isn't enough for the minimum maintenance, it's reduced proportionally. In this case, the resident parent can apply for an advance maintenance payment (Unterhaltsvorschuss) from the youth welfare office.

Did you know? The Düsseldorf Table is NOT a law – it's a guideline from the Düsseldorf Higher Regional Court. Even so, ALL German family courts apply it as a binding standard. The 2025 increase was only about 1% (€2–4 per level) – although inflation was much higher.

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