Citizens’ money: The job center has to pay these debts

For recipients of the citizen’s benefit introduced at the beginning of 2023, the standard monthly rate of 563 euros is usually just enough to survive. There is hardly enough money to pay off debts. This can be particularly dangerous if you owe rent. If rent debts are not paid for a long period of time, this can lead to an apartment being evicted and you may become homeless.

What can be done in such a situation? Is the job center obliged to take over rent debts if there is a risk of homelessness? Do I have to submit an application for this? All information at a glance.

Rent debts as a recipient of citizen’s benefit: The job center has to help

As the Citizens’ Money Association explains, the job center is obliged to pay rent debts in the form of a loan. The Federal Social Court decided this in a judgment in 2022. The lawsuit was brought by a woman who received social benefits (at that time still Hartz IV) and whose application for a loan to pay off her rent debts was rejected by the job center.

The ruling also states that there does not have to be a threat of homelessness for the loan to be granted. In addition, no formal application for a loan is necessary, as the Federal Social Court decided. In order for the job center to grant a loan, it is sufficient for the citizen benefit recipient to inform the job center of their impending termination of their apartment.

Loans to citizens’ benefit recipients: Private loans do not exclude loans from the job center

Also important is the decision stipulated in the judgment that private loans from friends or families do not exclude the right to a loan from the job center. That was the woman’s case on which the court ruled. The job center did not consider a loan necessary after the citizen’s benefit recipient had already received a loan from an acquaintance.

According to the ruling of the Federal Social Court, there are only two requirements for the job center to grant a loan:

• The job center knew about the emergency (rent debts, threat of termination)

• The job center had time to decide on the application for a job center loan before the private loan was paid out

As is so often the case, it is important this autumn that those receiving citizens’ benefit know which costs the job center will cover and which will not. A similar case is electricity costs, some of which are covered by the job center.