Applying for German insolvency pay (Antrag auf Insolvenzgeld, employee form)
When your employer is insolvent and wages are unpaid, it is YOU who applies for insolvency pay (Insolvenzgeld) at your local employment agency (Agentur für Arbeit) — online through the agency's eServices or on the paper form "Antrag auf Insolvenzgeld". What matters most is the exclusion period: two months after the insolvency event (section 324(3) sentence 1 SGB III). The insolvency event is not only the opening of insolvency proceedings, but also the dismissal of the petition for lack of assets, and the complete cessation of business activity where no petition was filed and proceedings are obviously out of the question for lack of assets (section 165(1) sentence 2 SGB III). Only the three months of employment preceding the insolvency event are covered (section 165(1) sentence 1 SGB III): wage arrears from earlier months are not replaced by insolvency pay. The Insolvenzgeld calculator shows which months that means for you.
Up to date for 2026 — verified on September 23, 2026Official formGuide: about 40 min
This content is part of the path: When the employer becomes insolvent· Step 7 of 8· Next step: German insolvency benefit for shareholder-managing directors — the supplementary sheet
Deadlines
- Application: two-month exclusion period after the insolvency event
- Section 324(3) sentence 1 SGB III — what counts is the insolvency event of section 165(1) sentence 2, so also the dismissal for lack of assets or the cessation of business, not only the opening
- Deadline missed through no fault of your own: two months after the obstacle ceases
- Section 324(3) sentence 2 SGB III; you are at fault if you did not pursue your claims with the necessary diligence (sentence 3)
- Advance payment: possible once the opening of proceedings has been applied for
- Section 168 sentence 1 SGB III — where the opening has been applied for, the employment has ended and entitlement is sufficiently likely
Documents to prepare
- Date and type of insolvency event: opening order, dismissal for lack of assets or day business ceased, with the case number of the insolvency proceedings
- Insolvency pay certificate (Insolvenzgeldbescheinigung) from the employer or the insolvency administrator
- Employment contract, notice of termination (if any) and latest payslips
- Pension insurance number, tax identification number, wage tax characteristics and bank details (IBAN, BIC)
- Details of other benefits for the period: unemployment benefit, sickness benefit, basic income support, with office and start date
- Evidence of part-payments by the employer, garnishments, assignments and unpaid salary conversion
- For family members or shareholders working in the business: the Deutsche Rentenversicherung decision or the matching supplementary sheet
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Who this applies to
- Employees who worked in Germany and, at the insolvency event, still have wage claims for the period the law covers (section 165(1) sentence 1 SGB III) — also where the insolvency event occurs abroad (section 165(1) sentence 3)
- Marginal part-time workers (geringfügig Beschäftigte), interns and students also count as employees (Federal Employment Agency page for employees)
- The heir of an employee (section 165(4) SGB III)
- Family members working in the business and managing shareholders: the German pension insurance (Deutsche Rentenversicherung) checks in a status determination procedure whether they were employees; without its decision, the matching supplementary sheet (Zusatzblatt) goes with the application (Federal Employment Agency page for employees)
- Third parties to whom the wage claim has passed — for instance through a garnishment or a maintenance claim: they have their own form, "Insolvenzgeld für Dritte" (Federal Employment Agency page; section 170(1) SGB III)
- NOT for claims you have because of the termination of the employment or for the period after it (section 166(1) no. 1 SGB III)
- NOT the insolvency pay certificate (Insolvenzgeldbescheinigung): that is issued by the insolvency administrator or the employer (section 314 SGB III) — your application and that certificate are two different forms
Worked example
Sales assistant Jana Brandt and the closure of Modehaus Seidel KG
Jana Brandt works as a sales assistant at Modehaus Seidel KG for 2,600 euros gross a month. Since the spring, salaries have been paid only in part. On 14 August the insolvency court dismisses the petition to open proceedings for lack of assets — that is already the insolvency event (section 165(1) sentence 2 no. 2 SGB III), even though no proceedings will ever be opened. The two-month exclusion period runs from that day (section 324(3) sentence 1). Jana applies on 2 September through the eServices and uploads her employment contract, the notice of termination, her latest payslips and the court case number. Insolvency pay covers only the three months of her employment preceding 14 August (section 165(1) sentence 1 SGB III); whatever is still unpaid from the earlier spring months is not replaced. The Insolvenzgeld calculator shows exactly which months these are. In the application she states that the employer still paid 800 euros in July and that she has been receiving unemployment benefit (Arbeitslosengeld) since September. As her employment had already ended before the dismissal, she could also have applied for an advance under section 168 SGB III. With the application, her wage claims pass to the Federal Employment Agency (section 169 sentence 1).
How to fill it in, step by step
- Identify the insolvency event and its date: opening, dismissal for lack of assets, or complete cessation of business (section 165(1) sentence 2 SGB III). Two months run from that day (section 324(3) SGB III).
- Check with the Insolvenzgeld calculator which months are covered; if you kept working without knowing of the event, the day you learned of it counts (section 165(3) SGB III).
- Gather the documents: the insolvency pay certificate from the employer or the administrator, the case number of the insolvency proceedings, your employment contract, the notice of termination (if any) and your latest payslips.
- If you were a family member working in the business or a managing shareholder: enclose the decision of the Deutsche Rentenversicherung or, if there is none, the matching supplementary sheet.
- File the application — online after logging in to eServices, or on the form — with your employment agency, even if the certificate is still missing: the deadline does not wait for it.
- Declare in the application every other benefit applied for or received for the period, as well as payments by the employer and any garnishments or assignments.
- If you need money straight away and the opening has been applied for: tick the advance payment box (section 168 SGB III).
- Report later changes to the agency, such as a new job or receiving unemployment benefit.
Good to know
- With the application, the wage claims that give rise to insolvency pay pass to the Federal Employment Agency (section 169 sentence 1 SGB III).
- Insolvency pay equals the net wage obtained from gross pay capped at the monthly contribution ceiling, less statutory deductions (section 167(1) SGB III) — the Insolvenzgeld calculator does the arithmetic.
- Wage claims include all remuneration from the employment (section 165(2) sentence 1 SGB III).
- Where the employer did not pass on converted salary to a pension fund, Pensionskasse or direct insurance, the salary conversion is treated as not agreed for the calculation (section 165(2) sentence 3 SGB III).
- A garnishment or pledge of the wage claim made before the application also covers insolvency pay (section 170(2) SGB III); if you assigned the claim beforehand, insolvency pay goes to that third party (section 170(1)).
- The advance is set off against insolvency pay and must be repaid if no entitlement, or only a smaller one, is recognised (section 168 sentences 3 and 4 SGB III).
- You can draw unemployment benefit at the same time; insolvency pay is set off against it, and the duration of unemployment benefit is not reduced (Federal Employment Agency page for employees).
- Unpaid social security contributions for the covered period are paid by the employment agency at the request of your health insurance fund (section 175(1) SGB III) — you do not need to apply for this.
- According to the Federal Employment Agency page, insolvency pay is tax-free; still declare it in your tax return and attach the agency's certificate.
- If the court dismisses the petition for lack of assets, the employer must notify the works council or, failing one, the employees without delay (section 165(5) SGB III).
Common mistakes
- Waiting for proceedings to be opened when the petition has already been dismissed for lack of assets. The dismissal is itself the insolvency event, and the two months run from it (section 165(1) sentence 2, section 324(3) SGB III).
- Holding back the application until the insolvency pay certificate arrives. The exclusion period runs regardless.
- Forgetting the supplementary sheet after working in the business as a spouse or child, or as a managing shareholder, without a decision from the Deutsche Rentenversicherung.
- Claiming amounts due because of the termination of employment or for the period after it: no insolvency pay is paid for those (section 166(1) no. 1 SGB III).
- Not declaring unemployment benefit, sickness benefit or another wage replacement benefit in the application.
- Leaving out garnishments and assignments. They extend to insolvency pay (section 170 SGB III).
Frequently asked questions
By when must I apply for insolvency pay?
Within a two-month exclusion period after the insolvency event (section 324(3) sentence 1 SGB III). The Federal Employment Agency page speaks of two months after the opening — what counts is the insolvency event, which may also be a dismissal for lack of assets or the cessation of business.
What if I missed the deadline?
If the delay was not your fault, insolvency pay is still paid when you apply within two months after the obstacle ceases (section 324(3) sentence 2 SGB III). It is your fault if you did not pursue your claims with the necessary diligence (sentence 3).
Which months does insolvency pay cover?
Only the three months of employment preceding the insolvency event (section 165(1) sentence 1 SGB III). Older wage arrears are not covered. If you kept working without knowing of the event, it is the three months before the day you learned of it (section 165(3)). The Insolvenzgeld calculator shows the period.
Can I get money before the decision?
Yes, an advance, where the opening of insolvency proceedings has been applied for, your employment has ended and entitlement is sufficiently likely (section 168 SGB III). The agency sets the amount at its due discretion.
I was married to the boss and worked in the business. What else do I need?
If the Deutsche Rentenversicherung has decided that you were an employee, submit that decision. Otherwise, enclose the supplementary sheet for family members (Federal Employment Agency page for employees).
Go further
Compute the related amounts
Related forms
- Issuing the German insolvency pay certificate (Insolvenzgeldbescheinigung)
- Supplementary sheet for family members to the German insolvency pay application (Zusatzblatt Familienangehörige)
- German status determination procedure (Statusfeststellung) — freelancer or employee?
- Sending the German employment certificate electronically (BEA)
- German insolvency benefit for shareholder-managing directors — the supplementary sheet
Official sources
- Section 165 SGB III — entitlement to insolvency pay and insolvency events — September 24, 2026
- Section 166 SGB III — exclusion of entitlement — September 23, 2026
- Section 167 SGB III — amount of insolvency pay — September 23, 2026
- Section 168 SGB III — advance payment — September 23, 2026
- Section 169 SGB III — transfer of claims — September 23, 2026
- Section 170 SGB III — dispositions over wages — September 23, 2026
- Section 175 SGB III — payment of compulsory contributions on an insolvency event — September 23, 2026
- Section 314 SGB III — insolvency pay certificate — September 23, 2026
- Section 324 SGB III — application before benefit (exclusion period for insolvency pay) — September 23, 2026
- Federal Employment Agency — insolvency pay for employees — September 23, 2026
- Federal Employment Agency — insolvency pay, information for employers — September 23, 2026
Guide and document provided for information purposes only; they do not constitute personalised legal or tax advice. Check the recipient organisation's requirements and consult a professional if needed.