Germany transfers 459 million euros for child benefit abroad

Berlin - Child benefit payments abroad reached a new record high last year. In 2021, 459 million euros were paid out to foreign accounts to those entitled to child benefit, according to a list from the Federal Employment Agency, which the AfD member of the Bundestag René Springer had requested and which was available to Junge Freihet. The year before, German authorities had transferred almost 430 million euros in child benefits abroad. In 2015 (previous data is not available), the total was still 261 million euros.

In March 2022, according to the data, child benefit was paid to 328,985 children abroad. Twelve years ago there were 95,093 children. The number of children living abroad who receive child benefit from Germany has risen by around 345 percent since 2010.

"No longer available"
Benefits such as the 2020 child bonus (EUR 300 per child), the 2021 child bonus (EUR 150 per child) and the 2022 child bonus (EUR 100 per child) are also provided on the basis of the existing EU Regulation (EC) No. 883/2004 paid for children living abroad. For the 2020 child bonus alone, the federal government assumed around 90 million euros, which would also flow abroad. 18.2 percent of all those entitled to child benefit are now foreign nationals. 20.5 percent of all children for whom child benefit is paid do not have a German passport. Around two percent of all children for whom German authorities make payments do not live in Germany.

“In some Eastern European countries, child benefit for two children already corresponds to one month's wages. The German taxpayer, who can hardly pay his rent here due to inflation, can no longer explain it,” criticizes AfD politician René Springer in an interview with Junge Freiheit. "That's why we, as the AfD parliamentary group, are calling on the federal government to reduce child benefit and the planned child bonus on local living costs."

Source: Junge Freiheit