Minimum wage in Germany in 2026 and 2027

The minimum wage in 2026 and 2027

Germany has one national minimum wage. It is the same in every state and every city, including Berlin. It is a gross rate for each hour of work.

A month has 13/3 weeks, so 40 hours a week are about 173.3 hours a month. The minijob law uses the same factor. A year has 52 weeks, or 2,080 hours. The US dollar amounts use the ECB rate of 30 Sep 2026.

Sources: Fifth Minimum Wage Adjustment Regulation (MiLoV5), section 1, BMAS, the minimum wage rises to €13.90 on 1 January 2026 (29 Oct 2025), Social Code IV (SGB IV), section 8, European Central BankChecked 20 Oct 2026

Who gets the minimum wage

Every employee who works in Germany gets at least the minimum wage. This includes part-time staff, minijob staff and the staff of employers based abroad.

The law excludes these groups:

• Young people under 18 who have not completed a vocational training.
• Apprentices. They get a minimum training pay under the Vocational Training Act (BBiG) instead. The government updates it each year.
• Volunteers.
• People who were long-term unemployed just before the job, for their first 6 months in it.
• Interns in a compulsory internship for school, training or university.
• Interns in a voluntary internship of up to 3 months, before or during a training or a course of study.
• Young people in an entry qualification (Einstiegsqualifizierung) or in a preparation for vocational training.

Other interns count as employees, and they get the minimum wage.

Sources: Minimum Wage Act (MiLoG), section 20, Minimum Wage Act (MiLoG), section 22, Vocational Training Act (BBiG), section 17Checked 20 Oct 2026

Minijobs and the minimum wage

A minijob pays at most €603 a month in 2026. The limit rises to €633 a month on 1 Jan 2027.

The law links the limit to the minimum wage. The limit is the minimum wage times 130, divided by 3 and rounded up to whole euros. That is 10 hours a week at the minimum wage.

Minijob staff get the minimum wage for each hour. The employer must record the start, the end and the length of each working day within 7 days. It must keep the records for 2 years. This does not apply to minijobs in private households.

Sources: Social Code IV (SGB IV), section 8, Minijob-Zentrale, the minijob with an earnings limit, Minijob-Zentrale, the minijob limit in 2027 (7 Oct 2026), Minimum Wage Act (MiLoG), section 17Checked 20 Oct 2026

Higher minimum wages in some sectors

Some sectors have a higher minimum wage, set by a regulation or by a binding collective agreement. Employers based abroad must also pay it to their staff in Germany.

Agency work has its own lower pay limit (Lohnuntergrenze). In Germany, an EOR arrangement can count as agency work. Then the EOR must pay at least this rate:

The regulation runs until 30 Sep 2027. Agency work also has an equal pay rule and an 18-month limit. Read how the agency work rules affect an EOR in Germany.

The care sector has three rates, by qualification:

Other sectors with their own minimum wage include roofing, building cleaning, scaffolding, painting, electrical trades, training services and airport security. The BMAS lists each rate in its overview of sector minimum wages.

Sources: Seventh Regulation on a lower pay limit in agency work (LohnUGAÜV 7), section 2, Seventh Care Work Conditions Regulation (7. PflegeArbbV), section 2, BMAS, sector minimum wagesChecked 20 Oct 2026

Pay dates, checks and fines

The minimum wage is due on the agreed pay day. At the latest, it is due on the last bank working day of the month after the work.

The customs administration (Zoll) checks that employers pay the minimum wage. An employer who does not pay it, or pays it late, can get a fine of up to €500,000.

Sources: Minimum Wage Act (MiLoG), section 2, Minimum Wage Act (MiLoG), section 14, Minimum Wage Act (MiLoG), section 21Checked 20 Oct 2026

The minimum wage since 2015

Germany introduced its minimum wage on 1 Jan 2015, at €8.50 an hour. A law raised it to €12.00 on 1 Oct 2022. All other changes came from the minimum wage commission.

Sources: Federal Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs (BMAS), the minimum wage since 2015Checked 20 Oct 2026

What an employer pays on top

The minimum wage is only the base. At €13.90 an hour and 40 hours a week, the salary is €28,912 a year. On top, the employer pays about €6,158 a year in social contributions, or 21.3% of the salary. That makes €35,070 a year, before any EOR fee.

The main rules for the job:

Working hours

At most 8 hours a working day. Up to 10 hours are allowed if the average stays at 8 hours over 6 months or 24 weeks.Working Hours Act (ArbZG), section 3Checked 1 Oct 2026

Minimum holiday

24 working days a year, counted on a 6-day week. This is 20 days on a 5-day week.Federal Leave Act (BUrlG), section 3Checked 1 Oct 2026

Sick pay

The employer continues to pay the salary for up to 6 weeks of illness. A new employee gets this right after 4 weeks of work.Continued Remuneration Act (EntgFG), section 3Checked 1 Oct 2026

Our Germany guide gives the full yearly cost for any salary, with each contribution, its source and the fees of EOR providers. See the cost of an employee in Germany.

We also publish the minimum wage of Mexico, with its border zone and its rates for 61 jobs. See the minimum wage in Mexico.

And we publish the minimum wage of the Philippines, region by region. See the minimum wage in the Philippines.

Sources: GKV-Spitzenverband, lohn-info.deChecked 27 Sep 2026

The minimum wage after 2027

A commission of employers and unions, the minimum wage commission (Mindestlohnkommission), proposes each new rate. It decides every two years. The government can make the proposal law by regulation, but it cannot change the amount.

The commission made its last decision on 27 Jun 2025, for 2026 and 2027. Its next decision is due in 2027. We update this page on the day that the next rate is official.

Sources: Minimum Wage Act (MiLoG), section 9, BMAS, the minimum wage commission, Federal Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs (BMAS), the minimum wage since 2015Checked 20 Oct 2026