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If you only have a low income, you can apply for housing benefit to reduce your housing costs.

Housing benefit is intended to enable you to live appropriately and in a way that is suitable for your family. You can receive housing benefit as

• rent subsidy for tenants or subtenants of living space or for residents of a home (residents of a home within the meaning of the respective state law; this also includes people with disabilities who are admitted to special forms of housing not only temporarily for the provision of integration assistance) or as an
• burden allowance for owners of their own home or condominium

apply for this.

If the costs of accommodation are covered by another social benefit provider, you are excluded from housing benefit. This is the case if you already receive

• citizen's allowance or
• basic income support in old age or
• in the event of reduced earning capacity or
• assistance towards living expenses or
• receive another transfer benefit for which the costs of accommodation have been taken into account in the calculation.

It is best to contact the relevant office in advance to find out what documents you need. In principle, you must provide the following proof of housing costs or charges:

• about transfer benefits (for example, assistance with living expenses, social benefit, basic security benefits in old age and in the event of reduced earning capacity, benefits under the Asylum Seekers Benefits Act)
• Certificate of earnings for the application for housing benefit,
• proof of increased income-related expenses according to the tax assessment,
• current notifications of pension payments of any kind,
• benefits according to the Third Book of the Social Security Code - Employment Promotion (e.g. unemployment benefit I, short-time working allowance, transitional allowance),
• Proof of sick pay and other wage replacement benefits,
• last tax assessment notice (for self-employed persons/traders).

To be on the safe side, please state all income of all household members in cash or cash equivalents, regardless of its source and regardless of whether the income is taxable or not. This will avoid unnecessary queries. The Housing Benefit Office will then check which of the income is creditable. If necessary, other supporting documents must be enclosed:

• Certificate of enrollment (students),
• BAföG notification (students),
• Declaration of monthly allowances from parents during studies,
• Proof of health insurance,
• Proof of pension or life insurance,
• Appendix to the application for housing benefit in the case of expenses to fulfill statutory maintenance obligations,
• Certificate of severe disability (if applicable, proof of care allowance payments),
• In the case of foreign nationals from third countries, proof of residence status and duration of residence must be submitted.
• Other EU citizens must submit a certificate of right of residence/EU residence permit and registration with the registration office.

To apply for a rent subsidy, you will also need the completed:

• Landlord certificate form (usually provided by the housing benefit authorities).

You will also need the following forms/proofs to apply for the encumbrance allowance:

• Form for determining the debt service charge
• Proof of the debt service charge (borrowed funds certificate, last proof of payment, interest and repayment schedule if applicable)
• Proof of the amount of the purchase price or construction costs (also for modernizations)
• Property tax assessment notice/proof of the amount of ground rent
• If applicable, proof of income from the transfer of rooms and areas to third parties
• Calculation of living space in accordance with DIN 277 or the Living Space Ordinance (WoFlV, building application)
• If applicable, notification of the building subsidy
• Proof of ownership, extract from the land register, purchase contract

You must be entitled to housing benefit as an applicant. You are eligible for a rent subsidy as:

• Tenants of residential property,
• a subtenant of living space,
• residents of a cooperative or foundation apartment,
• residents of a residential home,
• tenants with similar rights of use, in particular holders of permanent tenancy rights,
• Owners of an apartment building (three or more apartments), a commercial building or a business, if you live in this building,
• Owners of a detached or semi-detached house in which you live, but which also contains business premises to such an extent that it can no longer be regarded as a home,
• Owners of a full-time agricultural business whose residential part is not separated from the business part.
• women who live in women's shelters, even if the remuneration is calculated on a daily basis.
• A person who has been assigned to homeless accommodation or third-party accommodation by the homelessness authority, even if the usage fee (which is not, for example, calculated according to the number of days or staggered according to adults and children) is paid to the homelessness authority,

You are eligible for a housing allowance as:

• Owners of their own home or condominium,
• Owners of a small housing estate,
• Owners of a part-time agricultural business,
• Owners of a full-time agricultural property if the residential and commercial parts are separate and a housing benefit calculation can be made for the residential part,
• Owners of a permanent right of residence similar to ownership
• holders of heritable building rights and those who are entitled to the transfer of ownership of the building or apartment or to the transfer or granting of the heritable building right.

The owner of the dwelling must occupy the dwelling and pay the charges for it.

free of charge

• You submit your application in writing using the form provided or using the online service. You can send the form by post to the housing benefit office responsible for you or hand it in in person.
• The authority will check your application and send you a decision.
• If approved, the housing benefit is usually granted for twelve months.

The processing time depends, among other things, on the completeness of your information and the submission of the evidence required for processing the application.

Longer processing times are not at your expense: the entitlement to housing benefit is checked from the month in which the application is submitted. If you are already entitled to housing benefit, you will not lose any housing benefit.

You submit the application by the last day of the month from which you wish to apply for housing benefit at the latest. As a rule, you will receive the housing benefit from the first of the month in which your application was submitted to the housing benefit office.

• Appeal

You will find further information on how to lodge an objection in the notification of your application for housing benefit.