Run the Numbers on Parental Leave: Benefit, Costs and Savings in the Big Picture

Published by Adrian Vogel · Reading time: approx. 12 minutes · Last updated: October 2026 · Jurisdiction: Germany

Before you start: This guide is not tax, legal or financial advice. How much parental allowance you get is decided by the parental allowance office (Elterngeldstelle) of your federal state. That is the office where you apply. The rules below describe the state of play in October 2026. They apply to births from 1 April 2025. OWNAMIC works with the figures you enter. It describes; it does not advise.

In short:

• At the end you see whether your savings last through the leave.
• You need results from the official allowance calculator and your cost estimates.
• Getting ready takes about 30 minutes.
• OWNAMIC does not work out the allowance or tax, and files no claim.

How the big picture works in general is covered in Carrying your net worth forward. This guide answers a question many parents-to-be ask. What does a year of parental leave do to our income, spending and wealth? And are our savings enough?

What you should know

Parental allowance (Elterngeld) replaces part of your income, not all of it. The state pays it when you work less or not at all after a birth. The basic form is called basic parental allowance (Basiselterngeld). It is usually 65 to 67% of your net income before the birth. 67% applies to an Elterngeld net income between €1,000 and €1,200. From €1,240 it is 65%. Below €1,000 the rate rises up to 100%. Basic parental allowance is between €300 and €1,800 a month. ElterngeldPlus is between €150 and €900. Note: the Elterngeld net income is not the amount on your bank statement. The office works it out from your gross pay with fixed flat-rate deductions.

There is an income limit. It applies to births from 1 April 2025. What counts is your taxable income in the calendar year before the birth. That is your income after all deductions, as shown in your tax assessment. If it is above €175,000, there is no allowance. For couples, both incomes are added together. Single parents face the same limit.

How long it is paid.

• Basic parental allowance: up to 14 months in total. For this, both parents must claim. And one parent’s income must drop after the birth. One parent can take at least 2 and at most 12 months. Single parents can use all 14 months. It is only paid in the child’s first 14 months of life.
• At the same time: both parents can get basic parental allowance at the same time for one month only. That month must fall in the first twelve months of life. There are exceptions, for example for twins or more and for premature babies.
• ElterngeldPlus: one month of basic allowance turns into two months of ElterngeldPlus. You then get half the amount at most. This is mainly useful if you work part-time. While you get it, you may work up to 32 hours a week.
• Partnership bonus (Partnerschaftsbonus): these are extra months for couples. Do both parents work 24 to 32 hours a week at the same time? Then each gets two to four extra months of ElterngeldPlus.

Maternity protection comes first. Maternity protection (Mutterschutz) is a protected time around the birth. During it, mothers do not have to work. In the eight weeks after the birth, employed mothers get maternity pay (Mutterschaftsgeld). On top comes a top-up from the employer. Together this usually adds up to their previous net pay. These payments are set off against parental allowance. The months of life with maternity pay count as months of the mother’s basic allowance.

You pay no tax on parental allowance. But it raises your tax rate. This is called the progression clause (Progressionsvorbehalt, § 32b of the German Income Tax Act). The tax office adds the allowance in only to set your tax rate. The rest of your income that year is then taxed at a higher rate. This can mean you owe tax the following year. Parental allowance is a wage-replacement benefit, meaning money that stands in for your pay. If you get more than €410 of it in a year, you must file a tax return.

Child benefit (Kindergeld) comes on top. Since 1 January 2026 it is €259 per child per month.

Back payments cover only three months. If you apply late, the office only pays for the last three months of life before the month your claim arrives.

A child costs money every month. The Federal Statistical Office (Destatis) has figures on this. Couples with one child spent an average of €763 a month on the child in 2018. Prices have risen since then. And households vary widely. So use your own estimates. This is most true for childcare (Kita). Its fees differ a lot from one town to the next.

Preparation: the figures you need (30 minutes)

• the results of the official parental allowance calculator (Elterngeldrechner) on the federal family portal. Run it for each parent and for every model you are seriously thinking about. Examples: 12 + 2 months or 7 + 7 months, with or without ElterngeldPlus.
• the expected due date and the end of maternity protection
• your estimates for first equipment, ongoing costs and childcare
• if you have private health insurance: your premium without the employer’s share. That share stops during unpaid parental leave. People with mandatory public health insurance usually pay no contributions while they get parental allowance. Check your own case with your insurer.

Step 1: Record your current state completely

A scenario is only as good as the current state below it. The big picture needs at least Income and Fixed costs. Fixed costs are costs that come back every month. If one is missing, the chart stays grey and shows no amounts.

Record your salary:

1. Tap Plus, then Manual.
2. Choose Income. Under More precisely, pick the type Salary.
3. Enter a name, for example "Salary Lena".
4. Under Amount, enter your net pay. That is what reaches your account each month.
5. As the Interval, pick Monthly.

You can fill in the Gross Amount field. But the big picture only works with the amount. Are you a couple? Then create one salary each. You need that later for the second parent’s months.

Fixed costs and accounts. Record rent, insurance and subscriptions under Service expenses. Record accounts and savings under Financial assets with their balance. Your savings are the reserve. The big picture covers a shortfall from it. You do not need a separate "reserve" object.

Check. In the Finances edition, open the Big picture page. Under Details, the Data basis shows which kinds of input you have recorded. If variable costs are missing, the big picture warns you. Variable costs are costs that change from month to month. Whatever you have not recorded counts as zero. Then the curve looks too good.

Step 2: Create a scenario from the "Parental leave" template

A scenario is a what-if based on your real data.

1. In the big picture, scroll below Details to the scenario bar with Current state and Scenario.
2. Tap the + next to it (New scenario).
3. On the Template tab, choose Parental leave.

The template creates a Change income scenario object. In it, the largest income drops to two thirds, at most €1,800 a month. This starts at the beginning of next quarter and lasts twelve months. It is only a guide value. It leaves several things out: the 65% band, the minimum amount, the Elterngeld net income and maternity protection. You enter the exact amount in the next step.

At the top, under Name, give the scenario a clear name such as "Parental leave 2027, 12 + 2". The name is stored as readable text. The figures are encrypted.

Step 3: Enter the allowance from the calculator

On the Scenario objects tab you now see the Change income card. Check three fields:

• Applies to: the template picks the largest income. Does the parent with the smaller salary take the longer leave? Then switch it here.
• New monthly amount: enter the basic allowance from the official calculator. Change in percent also lets you enter a percentage. For parental allowance, though, the fixed amount from the calculator is more exact.
• From and Until: for the mother, the change only starts after maternity protection. That is about eight weeks after the due date. Until then, the salary keeps running in the scenario. That comes close to maternity pay plus the employer’s top-up.

Example (made up): Lena earns €2,600 net. The calculator gives her €1,600 basic parental allowance. So she is €1,000 a month short.

A note on accuracy: parental allowance is paid by the child’s months of life. A month of life runs from the birthday to the day before the same date in the next month. The big picture, though, works in calendar months. Set the dates as close to the months of life as you can. A few days off hardly change the picture.

Step 4: Add further phases and the second parent

Under Add scenario object, use Change income to add each further phase:

• ElterngeldPlus with part-time work: add a second Change income on the same salary. It starts when the first phase ends. As the New monthly amount, enter part-time net pay plus ElterngeldPlus. Both come from the calculator.
• Partner months: add a Change income on the second parent’s salary. For example, two months at that parent’s allowance.
• Partnership bonus: add one Change income on each salary for the same months. Each amount is part-time net pay plus the bonus.

For the same income, the periods must not overlap. Otherwise the editor says: "overlaps another change of the same income." On two different salaries, periods may run at the same time. You need that for the shared month and the partnership bonus.

Step 5: Add child benefit and new costs

Use Income and Expense to enter what the child brings with it. Each object has a Label, Amount, Interval, From and Until.

The tax back payment comes from the progression clause. Estimate it with a tax calculator. Or ask your tax adviser. OWNAMIC does not work out tax. Without this line, the scenario can look better than it is.

A one-off income or expense needs a date in the future. Otherwise the editor says "the date lies in the past." Anything you have already paid belongs in a real object.

Step 6: Pause savings plans (optional)

Many parents pause their ETF savings plan during parental leave. An ETF is a fund that tracks a stock market index.

1. On the My objects tab, open the Savings plans & planned trades group.
2. Switch the plan off for this scenario only.
3. For the restart, add a Savings plan scenario object on the same securities account. It starts the month after the leave.

In the same way, switch off in My objects anything that should not count in the scenario. Your real objects stay as they are.

Step 7: Apply it and read the result

At the bottom of the editor, In this scenario already shows the monthly totals. These are income, fixed costs, savings rates, remaining debt today and the gap to the current state. Then choose:

• Apply to view the scenario without saving it, or
• Save & apply to keep it.

While the scenario is active, the big picture has a dashed frame. At the top is the banner Scenario "Parental leave 2027, 12 + 2". Every figure is marked with "≈". This is how to read the result:

• The grey line is the Current state (comparison). The gap to the scenario line shows what the leave changes in your net worth. Net worth is all you own minus your debts.
• Versus current state after … y gives the difference at the end of the time span.
• Yearly surplus / deficit under Details: in the year of the leave, the bar gets smaller or turns red. A red year means you live off your savings.
• Categories: in the view by category, you see the Money & assets shrink. Property and securities stay put.
• Liquid assets used up in year …: liquid assets are money you can get at quickly. This red warning appears if the money in your accounts is not enough. The curve ends in that month. The big picture does not assume that you sell other assets or take out a new loan.

In the made-up example, income is €1,000 a month lower than today. On top come €400 of new costs. Take off €259 child benefit. That is about €1,140 a month. Over twelve months it is roughly €13,700. Only when your savings are well above that is there room for the unexpected.

Step 8: Compare variants

One scenario alone rarely answers the real question. That question is usually: which split suits us?

• With the Duplicate scenario icon in the banner, you copy a saved scenario. In the copy, you change only the phases, for example 7 + 7 instead of 12 + 2.
• Choose a scenario … in the scenario bar switches between the variants. Back to current state takes you back.
• You can have up to twenty scenarios per account. Every page visit starts in the current state.

Common mistakes

• Entering gross instead of net pay. The big picture works with the salary’s amount. If that is the gross figure, every surplus is too high.
• Taking the template for the result. Two thirds, at most €1,800: that is a placeholder, not an official decision.
• Forgetting maternity protection. If the change starts on the due date, the scenario misses two months of income. In real life, that money is paid.
• Changing only the income. Without child costs and the tax back payment, parental leave looks cheaper than it is.
• Overlapping phases. The editor rejects two changes on the same salary in the same month. Let the second phase start the day after the first one ends.

What OWNAMIC does not do here

• OWNAMIC does not calculate parental allowance. It knows neither your Elterngeld net income nor the rules of your parental allowance office. The figure comes from the official calculator, and later from your decision letter.
• OWNAMIC does not calculate tax. The tax office checks the progression clause, not the app. The same goes for comparing child benefit with the child allowance (Kinderfreibetrag). The child allowance is a sum that lowers the income you pay tax on.
• OWNAMIC does not file a claim. It also does not remind you of the three-month limit. You can record a deadline as an event on an object.
• The new amount grows too. A changed amount rises with the income growth you set, like any income. Parental allowance does not do that in real life. Over one year the difference is small.
• A scenario is not a promise. It shows what follows from your figures if all goes as entered.

Checklist to take with you

• Parental allowance calculator completed for each parent and each model, results noted
• Income limit (€175,000 taxable income) checked
• Salaries recorded net as Salary, one object per parent
• Fixed costs and accounts recorded, Data basis has no gap for income and fixed costs
• Scenario created from the Parental leave template and named
• Change income set on the right salary, amount from the calculator, start after maternity protection
• Further phases (ElterngeldPlus, partner months, partnership bonus) added without overlaps
• Child benefit, first equipment, ongoing costs, childcare and any tax back payment entered
• Savings plan paused for the leave and restart planned
• Result compared with the current state, variant duplicated
• Parental allowance claim filed in time (back payments for three months only)

Read on: Carrying your net worth forward · Why writing down your progress helps · Wealth in view

Sources

• Federal Ministry for Education, Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth (BMBFSFJ): Parental allowance (amount, duration, simultaneous receipt; German): https://www.bmbfsfj.bund.de/bmbfsfj/themen/familie/familienleistungen/elterngeld
• BMBFSFJ: Elterngeld and ElterngeldPlus (partnership bonus, part-time work; German): https://www.bmbfsfj.bund.de/bmbfsfj/themen/familie/familienleistungen/elterngeld/elterngeld-und-elterngeldplus-73752
• Familienportal: Parental allowance calculator and planner (German): https://familienportal.de/familienportal/rechner-antraege/elterngeldrechner
• Familienportal: How long can I receive parental allowance? (German): https://familienportal.de/familienportal/familienleistungen/elterngeld/faq/wie-lange-kann-ich-elterngeld-bekommen--124728
• Familienportal: What is the partnership bonus? (German): https://familienportal.de/familienportal/familienleistungen/elterngeld/faq/was-ist-der-partnerschaftsbonus--155198
• Federal Parental Allowance and Parental Leave Act (BEEG), incl. § 1(8) income limit, § 2 amount, § 4 duration (German): https://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/beeg/
• Income Tax Act § 32b, progression clause (German): https://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/estg/__32b.html
• Income Tax Act § 46, mandatory tax return with more than €410 of wage-replacement benefits (German): https://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/estg/__46.html
• Federal Employment Agency, Familienkasse: Child benefit – entitlement, amount and duration (German): https://www.arbeitsagentur.de/familie-und-kinder/kindergeld-anspruch-hoehe-dauer
• Federal Statistical Office: Number of the week – couples with one child spend €763 a month on their child (German): https://www.destatis.de/DE/Presse/Pressemitteilungen/Zahl-der-Woche/2021/PD21_26_p002.html
• Steuertipps: Parental allowance in the tax return (German): https://www.steuertipps.de/eltern-familie-ehe/elterngeld/themen
• kita.de: Parental allowance 2026 – what changes for parents (German): https://www.kita.de/wissen/elterngeld-2026-was-sich-fuer-eltern-aendert-und-wie-du-das-elterngeld-optimal-beantragst/

Amounts and rules apply to births from 1 April 2025, as of October 2026. They can change, and exceptions apply in individual cases. The decision of your parental allowance office is what counts.