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READER QUESTIONS

Reader question: Do I get Germany’s €300 energy relief payment if I’m out of work?

Germany's €300 taxable payment is going out to employees starting this month. But what happens to people who are currently out of work?

A person holds a wallet with cash.
A person holds a wallet with cash. Photo: picture alliance/dpa | Lino Mirgeler

To help people cope with the rising cost of living as well as rocketing energy and fuel prices, the German government is giving out a €300 gross payment to workers in Germany.

Here’s a look at how it affects those out of work at the moment, or people not currently in their workplace.

I’m out of work right now. Do I get the €300 payment?

The €300 payment – known as the Energiepreispauschale or EPP – goes out to people in employment who live in Germany. That includes people with marginal employment, such as those with mini-jobs, in temporary employment, trainees and students in paid internships. 

It will generally be paid by the employer through the payroll in September and should appear on your payslip under the letter ‘E’. Keep in mind that the amount is subject to tax.

People who are self-employed can deduct the lump sum from their advance tax payments in September. There is also the option of claiming it back with a tax declaration next year.

READ ALSO: What you need to know about Germany’s €300 energy relief payout 

Those who are not in employment do not get this specific payment. However, the one-off allowance is valid for people who have worked at some point in 2022. 

The requirements to get the payout is that you live in Germany and have received income in 2022. 

“All persons who reside or habitually reside in Germany during the year 2022 (unlimited income tax liability) and have earned certain income in the year 2022 are eligible for the EPP,” a spokesman from the Finance Ministry told The Local. 

In a question about when and for how long work must be carried out in Germany to receive the payment, the Finance Ministry said: “Taxpayers must generate qualifying income in 2022. The activity does not have to be carried out at a specific time or for a minimum duration.”

In this case, the person wouldn’t get it from an employer, but they can claim the payout with their tax return. 

“If there is no current first employment relationship on September 1st, 2022 (e.g., due to unemployment), payment of the EPP will be made by filing an income tax return for the year 2022,” said the Finance Ministry spokesman. 

What happens in other cases?

If an employee is registered as unemployed from January to September 2022, but starts working as an employee on October 1st (or another date this year) the employer does not have to pay out the EPP. But it is possible to claim it by filing a tax declaration for 2022. 

Meanwhile, employees on parental leave will also receive the EPP if they are getting parental benefits in 2022.  As a rule, payment is made via the employer. The worker has to prove to the employer that he or she is receiving parental allowance. However, if no payment is made in this way, employees can also receive the EPP by submitting an income tax return.

Those on sick pay currently should also get the payment from their work. When it comes to people taking a sabbatical, the employer still has to pay out the EPP if they are the main employer. 

If a pensioner was in active employment until July 31st for example, and now receives a company pension subject to tax, they won’t receive the payment via their former employer. Once again, they’d have to receive the EPP via the submission of an income tax return for the year 2022.

For a detailed look at different examples, check out the German Finance Ministry’s Q&A page (in German). 

What should I do if I have concerns?

You can talk to your tax advisor or the tax office in your area if that is applicable to your situation. 

For those in employment, contact your boss or accounts department to ask them for advice as they will be paying it out to staff.

Keep in mind that government has announced a further relief package that will focus on providing support to vulnerable groups, including pensioners and students. 

READ ALSO: 

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TRAVEL NEWS

How do the EU’s new EES passport checks affect the 90-day rule?

As European travellers prepare for the introduction of enhanced passport checks known as the Entry & Exit System (EES), many readers have asked us what this means for the '90-day rule' for non-EU citizens.

How do the EU's new EES passport checks affect the 90-day rule?

From the start date to the situation for dual nationals and non-EU residents living in the EU, it’s fair to say that readers of The Local have a lot of questions about the EU’s new biometric passport check system known as EES.

You can find our full Q&A on how the new system will work HERE, or leave us your questions HERE.

And one of the most commonly-asked questions was what the new system changes with regards to the 90-day rule – the rule that allows citizens of certain non-EU countries (including the UK, USA, Canada, Australia and New Zealand) to spend up to 90 days in every 180 in the EU without needing a visa.

And the short answer is – nothing. The key thing to remember about EES is that it doesn’t actually change any rules on immigration, visas etc.

Therefore the 90-day rule continues as it is – but what EES does change is the enforcement of the rule.

90 days 

The 90-day rule applies to citizens of a select group of non-EU countries;

Albania, Andorra, Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Australia, Bahamas, Barbados, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brazil, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominica, El Salvador, Georgia, Grenada, Guatemala, Honduras, Hong Kong, Israel, Japan, Kiribati, Kosovo, Macau, Malaysia, Marshall Islands, Mauritius, Mexico, Micronesia, Moldova, Monaco, Montenegro, New Zealand, Nicaragua, North Macedonia, Palau, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Samoa, San Marino, Serbia, Seychelles, Singapore, Solomon Islands, South Korea, Taiwan, Timor-Leste, Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago, Tuvalu, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States, Uruguay, Vatican City and Venezuela.

Citizens of these countries can spend up to 90 days in every 180 within the EU or Schengen zone without needing a visa or residency permit.

People who are citizens of neither the EU/Schengen zone nor the above listed countries need a visa even for short trips into the EU – eg an Indian or Chinese tourist coming for a two-week holiday would require a visa. 

In total, beneficiaries of the 90-day rule can spend up to six months in the EU, but not all in one go. They must limit their visits so that in any 180-day (six month) period they have spent less than 90 days (three months) in the Bloc.

READ ALSO How does the 90-day rule work?

The 90 days are calculated according to a rolling calendar so that at any point in the year you must be able to count backwards to the last 180 days, and show that you have spent less than 90 of them in the EU/Schengen zone.

You can find full details on how to count your days HERE.

If you wish to spend more than 90 days at a time you will have to leave the EU and apply for a visa for a longer stay. Applications must be done from your home country, or via the consulate of your home country if you are living abroad.

Under EES 90-day rule beneficiaries will still be able to travel visa free (although ETIAS will introduce extra changes, more on that below).

EES does not change either the rule or how the days are calculated, but what it does change is the enforcement.

Enforcement

One of the stated aims of the new system is to tighten up enforcement of ‘over-stayers’ – that is people who have either overstayed the time allowed on their visa or over-stayed their visa-free 90 day period.

At present border officials keep track of your time within the Bloc via manually stamping passports with the date of each entry and exit to the Bloc. These stamps can then be examined and the days counted up to ensure that you have not over-stayed.

The system works up to a point – stamps are frequently not checked, sometimes border guards incorrectly stamp a passport or forget to stamp it as you leave the EU, and the stamps themselves are not always easy to read.

What EES does is computerise this, so that each time your passport is scanned as you enter or leave the EU/Schengen zone, the number of days you have spent in the Bloc is automatically tallied – and over-stayers will be flagged.

For people who stick to the limits the system should – if it works correctly – actually be better, as it will replace the sometimes haphazard manual stamping system.

But it will make it virtually impossible to over-stay your 90-day limit without being detected.

The penalties for overstaying remain as they are now – a fine, a warning or a ban on re-entering the EU for a specified period. The penalties are at the discretion of each EU member state and will vary depending on your personal circumstances (eg how long you over-stayed for and whether you were working or claiming benefits during that time).

ETIAS 

It’s worth mentioning ETIAS at this point, even though it is a completely separate system to EES, because it will have a bigger impact on travel for many people.

ETIAS is a different EU rule change, due to be introduced some time after EES has gone live (probably in 2025, but the timetable for ETIAS is still somewhat unclear).

It will have a big impact on beneficiaries of the 90-day rule, effectively ending the days of paperwork-free travel for them.

Under ETIAS, beneficiaries of the 90-rule will need to apply online for a visa waiver before they travel. Technically this is a visa waiver rather than a visa, but it still spells the end of an era when 90-day beneficiaries can travel without doing any kind of immigration paperwork.

If you have travelled to the US in recent years you will find the ETIAS system very similar to the ESTA visa waiver – you apply online in advance, fill in a form and answer some questions and are sent your visa waiver within a couple of days.

ETIAS will cost €7 (with an exemption for under 18s and over 70s) and will last for three years.

Find full details HERE

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