Politics · Germany · 1 hr ago
About 1.4 million people have received Germany’s basic support for five years or more
About 1.4 million people in Germany have received basic income support for at least five years, around two in five people receiving the benefit.
The figures come from Germany’s Federal Employment Agency; the highest shares of long-term recipients at the end of 2025 were in Berlin and Bremen.
The number of long-term unemployed people rose above one million in 2025, after falling from 1.8 million in 2005 to 700,000 in 2019.
The rise has come as Germany’s economy weakened and unemployment increased.
The Institute for Employment Research says recipients often face barriers such as limited formal education or health problems.
It says supported work can improve their chances of getting jobs, but support needs to fit each person’s circumstances.
Germany’s government has replaced the Bürgergeld benefit with stricter basic-support rules, including cuts for people who do not cooperate.
Around 1.4 million people in Germany received basic support for at least five years, about two in five recipients, according to figures from the Federal Employment Agency.
The highest shares of long-term recipients at the end of 2025 were in Berlin, at about 45%, and Bremen, at 43%.
The figures were requested by the AfD, whose politician René Springer called for compulsory community work for people able to work who have received support for more than six months.
A CSU politician countered that people who need help must receive it.
The Institute for Employment Research said long-term recipients often face barriers such as low formal qualifications or health limitations.
- Who
- Around 1.4 million people receiving Germany’s basic support for at least five years.
- What
- Figures show the scale of long-term receipt of basic support. The AfD used them to renew calls for compulsory community work.
- When
- The figures were reported on 12 October 2026; the regional shares refer to the end of 2025.
- Where
- Germany, with the highest reported shares in Berlin and Bremen.
- Why
- The Institute for Employment Research said recipients often face barriers such as low formal qualifications or health limitations.
AfD
CSU social-policy position
Compulsory work
AfD
René Springer called for 15 hours of community work a week for people able to work who have received support for more than six months.
CSU social-policy position
Peter Aumer said the social system’s basic promise is that people who need help should receive it.
Penalties
AfD
The AfD said people who refuse the proposed work should receive only benefits in kind or, as a last resort, no benefits.
CSU social-policy position
The CSU position cited in the article stressed the duty to help those in need.
It cannot be that so many people receive Bürgergeld at taxpayers’ expense even though they could work.
The basic promise of our social system – whoever needs help must receive help.
Long-term unemployment stood at 1.8 million, according to the Institute for Employment Research.
Long-term unemployment had fallen to 700,000.
The number of unemployed people in Germany began rising again amid economic weakness.
The number of long-term unemployed also began rising.
Germany had more than one million long-term unemployed; at the end of the year, Berlin and Bremen had the highest shares of people receiving basic support for at least five years.
Spiegel reported that around 1.4 million people had received basic support for at least five years.
- Long-term support recipients
- Around 1.4 million
- Share of recipients
- About two in five
- Berlin share
- About 45% at the end of 2025
- Bremen share
- 43% at the end of 2025
- Basic support recipients able to work
- 3.7 million in September, 145,000 fewer than a year earlier
- Long-term recipients under 25
- 199,229
Sources
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