Calculating needs and available funds

Whether income is sufficient for naturalisation can only be assessed once it is clear which needs it must cover. A useful calculation therefore starts by identifying the people concerned and their living circumstances. Their necessary needs are then compared with the funds actually available. It is particularly important to use consistent periods, allocate income correctly and distinguish a rough household overview from the legal assessment of entitlement to social benefits.

The following approach mainly concerns ordinary naturalisation by entitlement under § 10 (1), first sentence, no. 3 StAG. The fundamental question here is whether applicants can support themselves without benefits under SGB II or SGB XII. Those who meet a statutory exception need an assessment tailored to it. In that situation, a calculated shortfall does not necessarily mean that naturalisation is ruled out.

Discretionary naturalisation under § 8 StAG must not be equated with the ordinary assessment under § 10 either. Its standard is broader in some respects. Before preparing a detailed calculation, we identify the assessment route: ordinary coverage of needs, a statutory exception or special hardship. The overview Income and securing your livelihood explains how these fit together.

We use a structured overview to identify possible calculation errors and missing documents. It does not, however, replace a full calculation under social welfare law. Particularly where the difference between needs and income is small, the rules on counting income, deductions and allocation within the family matter. A positive result from an ordinary household budget calculator is therefore not yet a binding statement about naturalisation.

We start the calculation with the applicant. Their family members entitled to maintenance must also be included. In particular, spouses, registered civil partners and children need to be considered. The decisive question is not simply who else wishes to become a German citizen. A child without their own naturalisation application may be just as relevant to the financial assessment as a child who is to be naturalised together with their parents.

A useful overview of the people concerned includes their age, family relationship, place of residence, education or employment and their own income. Where parents live separately, existing maintenance obligations must be added. For adult children, it must be clear whether they are still in education or training and whether they already meet their own living costs. Flatmates with no maintenance relationship must not simply be treated as members of the applicant's own family.

The benefit unit under social welfare law and the family group relevant under nationality law are not identical in every situation. Under § 9 SGB II, a partner's income in particular may be relevant when assessing need for assistance. This does not mean that everyone at the same address is treated alike. The specific living arrangement and the legal basis of financial responsibility must be clarified.

A recent complete month is a useful starting point for an initial overview. Every item must relate to the same period. Current rent must not be combined with a former salary that is no longer received. Nor can a full month's wages be assigned without explanation to a month in which employment began only in the second half.

Where circumstances change, we compare the affected months separately. If you receive parental allowance until March and return to part-time work in April, we present the two phases separately. An annual average can conceal a funding gap between those phases. Conversely, a single weak month can distort a stable annual picture where there is a clearly documented seasonal pattern.

The naturalisation authority needs an up-to-date assessment. If the proceedings take a long time, new payslips and amended decisions may be required. The documents submitted with the application are therefore the starting point for an account that must be kept current. A clear calculation is easier to update than a disorganised collection of bank statements.

Basic needs start with the standard needs of the people to be included. These cover ordinary living costs, such as food, clothing and household electricity. For people capable of work, the legal basis is in particular § 20 SGB II. The classification depends, among other things, on age and household circumstances. Adult partners are not automatically assigned two standard allowances for single people.

Accommodation and heating are added, along with any additional needs. Pregnancy, single parenthood or certain health circumstances can change the needs side of the calculation. Not every additional personal expense is a statutory additional need, however. We therefore distinguish needs recognised by law from other actual expenditure.

Health and long-term care insurance must also be clarified. For employees, employee contributions have often already been deducted in arriving at net pay. The same amount must not then be deducted again. Self-employed people or those with private insurance, by contrast, may have to make separate payments. The detailed article Living expenses, housing, health insurance and maintenance obligations explains the individual items of need and common instances of double counting.

The income side includes more than wages. Profits from self-employment, pensions, social benefits that can be taken into account, maintenance and available investment income may also be significant. We record each income source with its recipient, amount, payment frequency, legal basis and any end date. A benefit for a child is initially allocated to that child; its further treatment under social welfare law follows the relevant provisions.

For pay from employment, gross pay, net pay and the amount actually paid must be distinguished. For self-employed people, business costs and personal availability must be clearly separated. For a pension, alongside the award notice, it is relevant to establish what amount is actually available after the applicable deductions. A bank statement may show receipt of a payment, but does not always explain its legal nature.

The legal income calculation does not simply take every personal expense into account. § 11b SGB II, for example, sets out rules on taxes, compulsory contributions, certain insurance policies, necessary work-related expenses and allowances. Which items are relevant to a particular comparison must be determined by reference to the stage of the assessment concerned. Tax deductibility does not automatically mean identical treatment under social welfare law.

Earned-income allowances show particularly clearly why a simple net-income calculation has limits. Under social welfare law, part of earnings may be disregarded when calculating benefits even though the money is actually in the account. For naturalisation, actual receipt of benefits, substantive need for assistance and the sustainability of financial support must be distinguished. It would also be wrong to adopt all the calculation rules of residence law indiscriminately.

There is a specific distinction for statutory maintenance obligations: § 11b (1), first sentence, no. 7 SGB II covers maintenance actually paid, up to the amount set in an enforceable maintenance instrument or a notarised agreement. Simply stating that another person is being supported financially is not enough for this deduction. Other actual obligations may nevertheless be significant for the naturalisation forecast. The BMI application guidance, no. 10, paragraph 66, takes existing liabilities into account when assessing available financial resources. A shortfall giving rise to entitlement under social welfare rules must therefore not be confused with the actual monthly cash shortfall.

Suppose a purely illustrative household overview records total needs of 2,200 euros and available funds of 2,450 euros. The difference of 250 euros initially shows only that the figures entered balance mathematically. It does not prove that all people, deductions and needs have been taken into account correctly. Nor does it say anything yet about whether those funds will still be available in three months.

If, for example, 400 euros of the 2,450 euros comes from a time-limited benefit, the period after it ends must be considered. If there is instead an employment contract already signed with a sufficient salary, that can explain the later phase. If the money is non-binding support promised by an acquaintance, its reliability must be assessed differently. The quality of the income is therefore just as important as its amount.

These examples are not general income thresholds. Their purpose is to explain the sequence of the assessment. A calculated surplus does not imply either a legally required safety margin or a requirement for every household to save a particular additional sum each month. Where a calculation is tight, we examine its specific assumptions.

For obligations falling due annually or quarterly, a monthly planning figure can also help. It shows how much of current funds must be set aside for a payment that is already foreseeable. This personal financial planning must be distinguished from the statutory rules on when income is counted. A freely chosen average calculation cannot take their place. We therefore show both the actual due date and the planning assumption used.

We present your assets in a separate overview. We record their type, owner, approximate value, encumbrances and accessibility. Freely available savings can fund a transitional period. A restricted retirement savings product or an encumbered property, by contrast, cannot simply be converted into monthly available income. Whether assets are protected or must be used under social welfare law must also be examined separately.

If savings are to cover a monthly shortfall, we calculate how long the available reserves will last. Expenditure that is already foreseeable must be taken into account. A balance that must also cover an additional tax payment and business invoices is not fully available for personal living costs. Simply dividing the entire account balance by the monthly shortfall would then be misleading.

Assets and returns must not be counted twice. If a securities portfolio is sold, this is initially a conversion of existing assets. The sale proceeds must not be included in addition to the unchanged value of the portfolio. Likewise, for rental properties, ongoing net income and the potentially realisable sale value must remain separate.

When figures conflict, we first check whether they relate to different periods. A larger transfer may include arrears, while a lower payslip may reflect unpaid leave. We briefly explain such circumstances. If a document is still missing, specific information about the period and the reason is more helpful than substituting approximate figures recalled from memory.

When the authority asks for further information, we establish the particular fact it wants to examine. Is the issue the level of need, the legal availability of an income source or the future? This distinction helps provide the appropriate answer. Another old payslip, for example, does not answer how an already confirmed end of employment will be dealt with.

If current needs are adequately covered, the next step is to assess long-term financial security and the income forecast. A shortfall, by contrast, first calls for a check for possible errors and funds that have not been included. The next question is whether a statutory exception or the transitional rule for older applications applies. Refusal based solely on an unchecked rough calculation would fall short of a proper assessment.

If you receive benefits, we include the complete decisions in our assessment. A payment made to a single account holder may benefit several people; its purpose cannot reliably be inferred from the bank transfer description. The overview Social benefits and naturalisation explains the distinctions required. Only when the people included, the period, needs, funds and legal basis all align can the financial situation be meaningfully assessed.