Family

Overview

Child benefit

Child benefit (Kindergeld) is a financial support of the government.

General information

Parents are entitled to child benefit until their child turns 18. If the child takes up a place on a vocational training course or is studying, this entitlement continues until the child turns 25 as a maximum.
Nationals of the EU, the EEA and Switzerland are, just like German citizens, entitled to child benefit if they are living and/or working in Germany. Other foreign parents are generally also entitled to child benefit, if they have a valid settlement or residence permit which allows them to work in Germany legally.

How do I apply for child benefit?

Parents from countrys outside of the EU, the EEA or Switzerland apply for child benefit at the Family Benefits Office of the Landesamt für Besoldung und Versorgung (LBV) in Düsseldorf. They are entitled to child benefit if their child is in Germany for at least 6 months constantly and if they have a valid settlement or residence permit, which allows them to legally work in Germany.
Parents who are nationals of the EU, the EEA or Switzerland apply for child benefit at the Family Benefits Office of the local Employment Agency.

Child care

There are different options for child care. In the following we are showing the differences and giving further information to you.

Child Care Center
You can find a large number of different child care centers in Osnabrück: public, private, denominational and international. The Osnabrück University also has its own child care center for students and members of staff. Yet, the demand for places is much higher than the offer. Therefore we strongly recommend to search for suitable child care solutions as early as possible. Usually children aged 1 to 6 can be considered for child care. As a rule, admissions are normally on 1 August of each year and applications are accepted until mid/end of January. Admissions during the year are less common and mostly depending on vacancies due to families moving to another city. Child care centers are liable to costs. The level of the costs depends on the parents' income.
Click here for more information about child care center and the application

(In-home) Day Care
In-home day care is called "Tagesmütter" or "Tagesväter" (day mothers or day fathers) in German. They provide individualized care and have more flexible hours. They usually look after several children at a time in their own homes. In-home child care providers are trained and have an official licence from the local Office for Children, Youth and Family.
Click here for more information about the local Office for Children and Family

Babysitter
Babysitters are taking care of your children for only a few hours during the day or in the evenings on demand. The best way to find a babysitter is asking your colleagues or neighbours - maybe they know someone who is interested in Babysitting. Babysitters are often young pupils or students that want to earn some money.

Family Service at the University of Osnabrück

The Osnabrück University is a family-friendly university and is happy to help you with combining work and family life. Therefore there is a Family Service at the University, which offers for example advice for single parents or gives information on childcare. Do not hesitate to ask Mrs. Kammler, if you have any questions.

Contact
Lena Lorenz
Phone: +49 541 969 4521
E-Mail: lena.lorenz@uni-osnabrueck.de
Address: Gleichstellungsbüro, Neuer Graben 7/9, 49074 Osnabrück, room: 52/509
Homepage

Parental benefit

Parental benefit is a governmental support to even out the shortfall of salary after the birth of a child.

General information

The benefits amount to 65-67 % of the average monthly available steady work income before birth (after deduction of taxes, social contributions and tax allowable expenses) but only up to a maximum of 1.800 € and 300 € as a minimum
Parental benefits can be obtained by mother and father of a child for a duration of 14 months in total. The parents can freely distribute the time period between themselves. One parent can claim parental benefits for a maximum of 12 months. Single parents are entitled to 14 months by themselves.
Because of extensive legal regulations, we refer this webpage for further information about benefits for families

How to apply for parental benefits?

You can apply with an application for for parental benefits at the responsible Parental Benefit Office (called ‘Elterngeldstelle’ in German) of the respective state.
The ‘Elterngeldstelle’ in Osnabrück is located at
Natruper-Tor-Wall 2 (4th floor)
49076 Osnabrück
You can earliest apply for the benefit after the birth of your child. Backdated payments are only made for the last 3 months before the application.

Schools

General information

School attendance is compulsory between the age of 6 and 15 years (also for children from foreigners country who are living in Germany)
Attendance of public schools is free of charge in Germany
In Lower Saxony, the school year starts in August/September after six weeks of summer holidays

Kind of schools
The children's school education starts with Primary School ("Grundschule"; year 1 to 4). At the end of the 4th year, it has to be decided which secondary school the child will attend. In Lower Saxony, there are different types of public secondary schools:

Gymnasium (year 5 to 13): offers a broad and in-depth education. With finishing this type of school you are allowed to study at university afterwards
Realschule (year 5 to 10): well-founded education and work-orientated competencies. After finishing this kind of school, you can start an apprenticeship or switch to another school (e.g. "Gymnasium")
Hauptschule (year 5 to 9/10): general schooling. After finishing this kind of school, you can start an apprenticeship or switch to another school (e.g. Realschule or Gymnasium)
Gesamtschule: It is a school form comprising all the other forms in only one school. It is a good option, if parents can not choose one of the other three school forms already after primary school. Because sometimes, it is very difficult to assess the capabilities of a child being so young

Click here for an overview of schools in Osnabrück

Visa procedure

Depending on your home country, your family also needs a visa and residence permit to stay in Osnabrück. Please let us know as soon as possible, if your family is also coming to Osnabrück, so we can help you with preparing and addressing the required formalities. Please note that it can take at least 12 weeks or even longer to get a visa.

If your family needs a visa...

Check the website of your Federal Foreign Office for information on the exact visa requirements and regulations.
Please note that the Foreigners Office in Osnabrück only accepts certificates of marriage or birth certificates (in German or an English translation) with the legalization of a German consulate.

Further information