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Reporting severely disabled employees and paying the compensatory levy in Germany

An employer with an annual monthly average of at least 20 workplaces must fill at least 5 percent of them with severely disabled people (schwerbehinderte Menschen, § 154(1) sentence 1 SGB IX) — below 40 workplaces one person, below 60 two (sentence 3). The previous year's data, broken down by month, must be reported to the employment agency (Agentur für Arbeit) for the employer's seat by 31 March at the latest (§ 163(2) sentence 1 SGB IX). By the same date, the compensatory levy (Ausgleichsabgabe) must be paid to the integration office (Integrationsamt) for each unfilled mandatory workplace (§ 160(1) and (4) SGB IX). There is no exemption, and according to the Federal Employment Agency the deadline cannot be extended.

Up to date for 2026 — verified on September 23, 2026Official procedure, no printed formGuide: about 45 min

This content is part of the path: Employing severely disabled people· Step 6 of 6· Last step of the path

Deadlines

Report to the employment agency: by 31 March at the latest, for the previous year
§ 163(2) sentence 1 SGB IX — once a year, broken down by month, with the register and a copy for the integration office (sentence 2)
Levy to the integration office: together with the report
§ 160(4) sentence 1 SGB IX — the Agency advises that the amount should have reached the integration office's account by 31 March; after 31 March the integration office charges late-payment surcharges (sentence 3)
No or incorrect report by 30 June: formal determination
§ 163(3) SGB IX — the Federal Employment Agency then determines the calculation data itself by decision
Closure: after the following year, no further claim and no refund
§ 160(4) last sentence SGB IX — the relevant year is the calendar year following receipt of the report by the Agency

Documents to prepare

  • The employer's establishment number (Betriebsnummer) and seat
  • Monthly headcounts for the previous year, with apprentices, weekly hours and short fixed terms shown separately
  • Register of severely disabled, equivalent-status and other countable employees per establishment
  • Decisions on multiple counting or approval below 18 hours a week, if any
  • Contact details of the works council, the disabled employees' representative and the inclusion officer
  • The IW-Elan software and the bank details of the competent integration office
See the procedure on the official site

No form is attached to this procedure: the link leads to the official page that describes it.

What this page gives you

The guide above and the link to the official site. ActioFin does not produce any document for this page: whatever you fill in or file is done on the official medium.

Who this applies to

  • Private and public employers with an annual monthly average of at least 20 workplaces within the meaning of § 156 SGB IX (§ 154(1) sentence 1 SGB IX)
  • They report every year, even when they meet the quota: the report serves to calculate the extent of the obligation, to monitor its fulfilment and to compute the levy (§ 163(2) sentence 1 SGB IX)
  • All employers keep a running register of the severely disabled, equivalent-status and other countable people they employ, separately for each establishment (§ 163(1) SGB IX)
  • NOT required to report: employers without the employment obligation — except when asked by the Federal Employment Agency for the representative sample survey carried out every five years (§ 163(4) SGB IX)
  • NOT counted as workplaces: apprentices' positions (§ 157(1) SGB IX), positions of fewer than 18 hours a week and positions filled for eight weeks at most (§ 156(3) SGB IX)
  • NOT exempt: employers who find no severely disabled applicants or who offer physically demanding work — according to the Agency, no exemption from the obligation or the levy is possible

Worked example

Druckerei Albers GmbH reports for 2025

In 2025 Druckerei Albers GmbH has a monthly average of 50 employees, including three apprentices and two helpers working twelve hours a week. Apprentices are not counted (§ 157(1) SGB IX), and positions below 18 hours a week are not workplaces (§ 156(3) SGB IX): 45 workplaces remain. As there are fewer than 60, Albers must employ an annual monthly average of two severely disabled people (§ 154(1) sentence 3 SGB IX). Throughout the year one severely disabled printer works full-time; one mandatory workplace stays unfilled. For employers with fewer than 60 workplaces employing fewer than two severely disabled people, § 160(2) sentence 2 no. 2 SGB IX sets a base amount of 140 euros per unfilled mandatory workplace; after adjustment under § 160(3), the Federal Employment Agency gives 155 euros a month for the rules applying from 2025. Over twelve months that is, illustratively, 1,860 euros. Albers prepares the report, with the month-by-month register, in IW-Elan, sends it by 31 March 2026 to the employment agency for its seat, sends a copy each to the works council, the disabled employees' representative and the inclusion officer (§ 163(2) sentence 3 SGB IX), and transfers the levy so that it reaches the integration office by 31 March. Paying does not lift the obligation (§ 160(1) sentence 2 SGB IX): the IW-Elan savings calculator shows how hiring a second severely disabled person in 2026 would affect the levy.

How to fill it in, step by step

  1. Establish, for each month of the previous year, the number of workplaces under § 156 SGB IX, excluding apprentices (§ 157(1) SGB IX), positions under 18 hours a week and positions of eight weeks at most (§ 156(3) SGB IX).
  2. Take the annual average: from 20 workplaces the employment obligation applies (§ 154(1) sentence 1 SGB IX).
  3. Determine the mandatory workplaces: 5 percent; below 40 workplaces one, below 60 two (§ 154(1) SGB IX); fractions of 0.5 or more are rounded up, but rounded down for employers with fewer than 60 workplaces (§ 157(2) SGB IX).
  4. Update the register of severely disabled, equivalent-status and other countable people for each establishment (§ 163(1) SGB IX), and check whether multiple counting has been applied for or applies by law.
  5. Prepare the report with the free IW-Elan software named by the Agency for this purpose; it also computes the levy.
  6. Send the report, with the register and a copy for the integration office, to the employment agency for your seat by 31 March at the latest (§ 163(2) sentences 1 and 2 SGB IX) — fastest electronically.
  7. Send a copy of the report and the register each to the works or staff council, the disabled employees' representative and the inclusion officer (§ 163(2) sentence 3 SGB IX).
  8. Transfer the levy to the integration office for your seat so that it arrives by 31 March (§ 160(4) sentence 1 SGB IX).
  9. Notify newly elected representatives and appointed inclusion officers to the agency and the integration office without delay (§ 163(8) SGB IX).

Good to know

  • The levy does not replace employment: paying it does not lift the obligation to employ severely disabled people (§ 160(1) sentence 2 SGB IX).
  • The statutory base amounts: 140, 245, 360 and 720 euros per unfilled mandatory workplace depending on the employment rate (§ 160(2) sentence 1 SGB IX); for employers below 40 workplaces 140 and 210 euros, below 60 workplaces 140, 245 and 410 euros (sentence 2). They rise with the reference value under § 18(1) SGB IV (§ 160(3) SGB IX); the footnote to the statute refers, for amounts from 1 January 2025, to the notice of 2 December 2024 (BAnz AT 11.12.2024 B2), which was not read here.
  • The Agency's scale for the rules applying from 2025, per unfilled mandatory workplace and month: from 60 workplaces 155 euros (rate 3 to under 5 percent), 275 euros (2 to under 3), 405 euros (over 0 to under 2) and 815 euros (0 percent); below 40 workplaces 155 or 235 euros; below 60 workplaces 155, 275 or 465 euros.
  • According to the Agency, the top tier for a 0 percent rate applies since 1 January 2024 to establishments that employed not a single severely disabled or equivalent-status person during the whole year.
  • Severely disabled apprentices count, according to the Agency, as two mandatory workplaces without any application; other multiple counting must be applied for at the agency.
  • Employment below 18 hours a week can be counted on application where the part-time work is necessary because of the nature or severity of the disability (approval, according to the Agency).
  • Failing to file the report, or filing it incorrectly, incompletely, not in the prescribed manner or late, is an administrative offence (§ 238(1) no. 3 SGB IX); the fine can reach ten thousand euros (§ 238(2) SGB IX).
  • If an employer is more than three months in arrears, the integration office issues a determination and collects the amounts; objection and action have no suspensive effect (§ 160(4) sentences 2 and 5 SGB IX).
  • The register and the report must use the Agency's agreed templates (§ 163(6) SGB IX). The Agency's explanatory notes on the reporting procedure are a PDF and were not read here.

Common mistakes

  • Not reporting because the quota is met. The report also serves to monitor fulfilment (§ 163(2) sentence 1 SGB IX) and is still due.
  • Counting apprentices and very small part-time positions. Apprentices are not counted (§ 157(1) SGB IX), positions under 18 hours a week are not workplaces (§ 156(3) SGB IX).
  • Applying 5 percent to 45 workplaces. Below 60 workplaces the fixed number of two mandatory workplaces applies (§ 154(1) sentence 3 SGB IX).
  • Reporting only the year-end position. The data must be broken down by month (§ 163(2) sentence 1 SGB IX).
  • Paying the levy to the employment agency. The recipient is the integration office for the employer's seat (§ 160(4) sentence 1 SGB IX).
  • Taking the base amounts in the statute for the amount payable. They are adjusted under § 160(3) SGB IX and reset by official notice.
  • Asking for an extension. The date is set by law and, according to the Agency, cannot be extended.
  • Forgetting the copies for the works council and the disabled employees' representative (§ 163(2) sentence 3 SGB IX).

Frequently asked questions

From how many employees must I report?

From an annual monthly average of at least 20 workplaces within the meaning of § 156 SGB IX (§ 154(1) sentence 1 SGB IX). Employers below that report only when asked for the sample survey held every five years (§ 163(4) SGB IX).

When is the report due?

Once a year, by 31 March at the latest, for the previous calendar year (§ 163(2) sentence 1 SGB IX). The levy must be paid to the integration office at the same time (§ 160(4) sentence 1 SGB IX).

How much is the levy?

It is tiered by employment rate and employer size (§ 160(2) SGB IX) and adjusted over time (subsection 3). For the rules applying from 2025, the Agency gives, per unfilled mandatory workplace and month, 155 to 815 euros from 60 workplaces, 155 or 235 euros below 40, and 155, 275 or 465 euros below 60 workplaces. IW-Elan computes the individual case.

Can I be exempted if I find nobody?

No. According to the Agency, no exemption from the employment obligation under § 154 SGB IX or from the levy under § 160 SGB IX is possible; the obligation applies automatically, without any prior request.

What happens if I do not report?

Without a correct report by 30 June, the Federal Employment Agency determines the calculation data by decision (§ 163(3) SGB IX); a missing or late report is also an administrative offence with a fine of up to ten thousand euros (§ 238(1) no. 3 and (2) SGB IX).

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Official sources

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