Minijob, Werkstudent and Azubi: Small Jobs in Germany

The thresholds below are the 2026 figures. The minijob limit is tied to the statutory minimum wage, so it rises whenever the minimum wage does — always check the current value before signing a contract that sits close to the line.

Minijob: up to €602 a month

A minijob, formally marginal employment (geringfügige Beschäftigung), is any job paying no more than €602 a month, or €7,224 a year. Earnings can fluctuate as long as the yearly total stays under the cap, so a busier December can be balanced by a quieter January.

You pay no income tax and no unemployment or health insurance contributions on it. Your employer pays a package of flat-rate contributions of roughly 30% of your wage instead, and registers you with the Minijob-Zentrale rather than a normal health insurer.

One contribution does fall on you: pension insurance, where you top up the employer's flat rate by 3.6% of your wage. You may apply for an exemption (Befreiung von der Rentenversicherungspflicht), which raises your take-home slightly but stops the months counting fully toward your pension record. For anyone planning a long career in Germany, keeping the contribution is usually the better trade.

Midijob: €602.01 to €2,000 a month

Above the minijob limit you enter the transitional band (Übergangsbereich), commonly called a midijob. Full social insurance applies, but your share is reduced on a sliding scale and reaches the normal employee rate only at the top of the band. Your employer covers the difference.

This exists to remove the cliff edge at €602. Without it, earning one euro more than the minijob limit would cost you far more than one euro in contributions. Income tax is charged normally in this band according to your tax class, though at these income levels the basic allowance often means little or no tax is actually due.

Working student (Werkstudent)

The working student privilege (Werkstudentenprivileg) is the most valuable status on this page. If you qualify, you are exempt from health, care and unemployment insurance and pay only pension contributions at 9.3%, no matter how much you earn.

To qualify you must be:

• enrolled at a recognised university or college;
• working no more than 20 hours a week during the teaching period. You may work more during semester breaks, and evening, night and weekend shifts are treated more generously;
• generally under 30, which is the age limit for the student health insurance tariff.

Instead of a percentage of your salary, health and care insurance are charged at a flat student rate calculated from the BAföG reference amount, which works out at roughly €120 to €130 a month in total. That is a large saving for anyone earning a decent hourly rate.

Two things end the privilege. Exceeding 20 hours a week during term is the obvious one. Less obvious is the income ceiling: once your monthly earnings reach around €2,225, studying is no longer considered your main occupation and you are insured as an ordinary employee, with the full percentage-based contributions that implies.

Apprentices (Azubis)

Apprentices are ordinary employees for tax purposes, with one special rule. If your training allowance is €325 a month or less, your employer pays the entire social insurance contribution — both halves — and nothing is deducted from you. This is the low-earner threshold (Geringverdienergrenze).

Above €325, contributions are split normally between you and your employer. Apprentices are never treated as minijobbers, even if the allowance is small, because the training relationship is a full employment relationship in law.

Free cover through a family member

Family insurance (Familienversicherung) lets a spouse or child be covered by a public health insurer at no extra cost. It is worth checking before you pay for your own policy.

• Your own income must stay below about €565 a month. A minijob is treated more generously and is measured against the minijob limit instead.
• Children can stay on a parent's insurance to 23, or to 25 while in education.
• A spouse with little or no income can be covered indefinitely, provided the insured partner is in the public system.

If you are privately insured, family cover does not exist: each person needs their own policy and their own premium.

Students who freelance

Self-employment does not give you the working student privilege. Health insurance is your own responsibility, and you pay the full contribution rather than splitting it with an employer, though a reduced student tariff may still be available while you are enrolled and under 30.

There is no unemployment insurance and, for most professions, no compulsory pension. Depending on your activity you may need a trade registration (Gewerbeanmeldung) — see how registration works — and you should watch the small business rule (Kleinunternehmerregelung), which keeps you out of VAT while your turnover stays low.