With the increase in the mini-job limit on October 1st, the framework conditions for health insurance and Co. are changing for low earners. A transitional regulation is intended to make life easier for those affected.

From October 1st, the mini-job limit will increase from 450 to 520 euros. Employees who have previously earned between 450.01 and 520 euros would lose their insurance status with the change, the mini job center announced. To ensure that this does not happen, a transitional regulation will apply until December 31, 2023, which grants those affected the right of continuance.

In principle, those employees remained subject to compulsory health, long-term care and unemployment insurance. At their own request, they could be exempted from compulsory insurance – if necessary only from individual branches of insurance. However, this also eliminated the claims to benefits, the mini-job center further announced.

Anyone who wants to be freed should therefore seek advice on the advantages and disadvantages in advance. The health insurance company is responsible for health and long-term care insurance, and the Employment Agency is responsible for unemployment insurance. The application for exemption is then submitted to the employer. If you submit the application by January 2, 2023, you will receive a retrospective exemption from October 1, 2022.

With the increase in the mini-job limit, the income limit for family insurance also increases. For employees who meet the requirements for family insurance from October due to the increase, the obligation to have health insurance – and thus also nursing care insurance – ends automatically, according to the Minijob-Zentrale. Those affected are then legally insured through the family insurance with their health insurance company.

In the pension insurance system, no transitional regulation is required, because mini-jobs are also subject to pension insurance. Employees can apply to be exempted from this obligation. But employees should also think twice about taking this step – if you can be exempted, your employer will no longer pay any pension insurance contributions.

(This article was first published on Tuesday, September 06, 2022.)