Parental leave notice to the employer — Elternzeit (Germany)
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This document is in German
The PDF you download is in German — that is the language it has to be filed in, so it is not translated. Everything on this page is here to tell you what it says.
The notice by which an employee in Germany claims parental leave (Elternzeit) under § 16 of the Federal Parental Allowance and Parental Leave Act (BEEG): the child, the date of birth or due date, the start and end of the leave and any further periods, with the binding choice for the first two years and a request for confirmation. It must reach the employer at least seven weeks before the leave starts, or 13 weeks before leave after the third birthday. For children born or placed for adoption from 1 May 2025, text form such as e-mail is enough; for older children a hand-signed original is required. In German.
What you fill in
The details the document asks for.
- Employee
- Employee's address
- Employer
- Employer's postal address (department if any, street, postcode and town)
- City
- Date
- Child's name (if already known)
- Child's date of birth, or expected date of birth
- Period from
- Period to
- Further periods of parental leave, with start and end (or “none”)
- Part-time work during parental leave: not requested, or a separate request will follow
- When the child was born or placed for adoption: from 1 May 2025 (text form is enough) or earlier (signed by hand)
Preview
This document is produced for you. Your answers are typed into it and the finished PDF is yours to keep.
Common questions
- By when must parental leave be claimed from the employer in Germany?
- For leave before the child's third birthday, at least seven weeks before it starts; for leave between the third and eighth birthdays, at least 13 weeks before (§ 16(1) BEEG). What counts is when the letter reaches the employer, not when you send it. Anyone wanting leave straight after the birth therefore claims it during the pregnancy, giving the due date. From the claim on, you are protected against dismissal, but no earlier than eight weeks (14 weeks for later leave) before the leave starts (§ 18 BEEG).
- Is an e-mail enough for parental leave in Germany, or must the letter be signed by hand?
- It depends on the child. If the child was born or placed for adoption on or after 1 May 2025, text form is enough (§ 16(1) BEEG, § 126b BGB): you can send this letter as a PDF by e-mail. For a child born or placed earlier, written form still applies (§ 28 BEEG, § 126 BGB): print it, sign it by hand and deliver the original — an e-mail or a scan would be invalid. The choice in the letter tells the employer which form you have used.
- How do I set out the periods of parental leave in Germany?
- Each parent can take parental leave until the child's third birthday, and up to 24 months of it may fall between the third and eighth birthdays (§ 15 BEEG). For the time up to the third birthday, the claim must state bindingly which periods within two years you will take. Leave can be split into three periods; a third period after the third birthday may be refused by the employer within eight weeks for urgent operational reasons (§ 16(1) BEEG). Enter any further periods with their start and end.
- Can I work part-time during parental leave in Germany?
- Yes, up to 32 hours a week (§ 15 BEEG). You agree this with the employer, and under the conditions of § 15(7) BEEG you have a right to it. Make a separate request stating the start, the hours and the preferred distribution of working time; this letter only announces it, if you choose. If the employer refuses such a request, it must do so with reasons within four weeks (eight weeks for part-time after the third birthday), or consent is deemed given. Text form is enough for the request and the refusal where the child was born or placed from 1 May 2025; for older children written form applies.
- Is parental leave in Germany the same as applying for parental allowance (Elterngeld)?
- No. Parental leave is the release from work that you claim from your employer with this letter; the employer does not approve it but confirms it (§ 16(1) BEEG). Elterngeld is a cash benefit applied for separately at your Land's Elterngeld office, online through ElterngeldDigital or a Land portal depending on the Land. The periods of benefit and leave need not match, but should be planned together.
- How do I prove that the parental leave notice reached my employer in Germany in time?
- Keep proof of receipt, because the deadlines and the protection against dismissal depend on it (§ 130(1) BGB, § 18 BEEG). By e-mail, ask for confirmation of receipt and save the reply. On paper, hand over the original in person and have receipt confirmed on your copy, or have a messenger who knows the contents put it in the letterbox and note the date and time. The tracking status of an Einwurf-Einschreiben alone does not prove receipt (Federal Labour Court, 30 January 2025, 2 AZR 68/24).
How you can sign this document
- Print it and sign by hand. The signature lines in the document are left blank on purpose — sign on them in ink.
- Sign it yourself with a qualified electronic signature. If you already hold a QES — Evrotrust, B-Trust, StampIT, ZealiD or any qualified provider on the EU Trusted List, on a card, a USB token, in a mobile app or in the cloud — our signing guide explains step by step how to sign this exact file without invalidating it. Step-by-step help, and a way to check it worked
DocMuse sells documents, not legal advice. Acceptance always depends on the recipient's rules and your local law.
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