The Bundestag has given the green light for the planned citizens’ allowance. In a roll-call vote on Friday, the majority of MPs voted in favor of a compromise on the successor to Hartz IV, which came about under pressure from the Union.

557 MPs voted in favor, against 98. Two abstained. The final vote in the Federal Council should take place on Friday.

This means that the citizen’s income could flow with significantly higher benefit rates on January 1st. The core of the reform is a change in the job center’s approach to the unemployed. In the future, they should do more to ensure that those affected get permanent work instead of short-term unskilled jobs. These parts of the reform are scheduled to come into force on July 1st.