Federal Constitutional Court, 18 July 2012, Ref.: 1 BvL 10/10, 1 BvL 2/11
The Asylum Seekers' Benefits Act ("AsylbLG") of 1 November 1993 regulates the amount and form of benefits for asylum seekers in need of material assistance in Germany.
According to the AsylbLG, benefits for accommodation, household effects, food, clothing and personal care needs are to be granted in particular in the form of benefits in kind.
§ Section 3 AsylbLG regulates the basic benefits for asylum seekers in this respect. According to § 3 Para. 1 AsylbLG, the necessary requirements for food, accommodation, heating, clothing, health and personal care and household consumer goods are covered by benefits in kind.
In addition to benefits in kind, beneficiaries receive
1. up to the age of 14 years 40 German marks,
2. from the age of 15, 80 German marks
per month as a sum of money to cover personal needs in daily life.
Pursuant to Section 3 (2) AsylbLG, benefits in the form of vouchers, other comparable non-cash settlements or cash benefits of the same value may be granted in the event of accommodation outside of reception centres within the meaning of Section 44 of the Asylum Procedure Act, insofar as this is necessary under the circumstances, instead of benefits in kind to be granted as a priority pursuant to paragraph 1 sentence 1.
The value is
1. 360 German marks for the head of the household,
2. for household members up to the age of 7, 220 German marks,
3.for members of the household from the age of 8 310 German marks
The scope of application of the AsylbLG has been extended several times over the years.
Entitled to benefits In addition to asylum seekers, those entitled to benefits under the Asylum Seekers Benefits Act now also include war refugees and other persons in possession of a residence permit, tolerated persons and persons obliged to leave the country as well as their spouses, partners and underage children.
In the above-mentioned case, the Federal Constitutional Court has now ruled that the provisions of the AsylbLG on basic benefits in the form of cash benefits are unconstitutional.
Facts of the Case The claimant, born in 1977, travelled to the Federal Republic of Germany in 2003, applied for asylum after entering the country without success and has been tolerated since then (Section 60a (2) sentence 1 Residence Act).
In accordance with § 3 AsylbLG, he has since received basic benefits, most recently in the amount of 224.97 euros.
This amount is made up of a sum of money in accordance with § 3 Para. 1 AsylbLG totalling 40.90 euros and benefits in accordance with § 3 Para. 2 AsylbLG totalling 184.07 euros, of which 15.34 euros is for electricity costs for accommodation.
The claimant lodged an appeal against the amount of these benefits with the Social Court. The court dismissed the claim, whereupon the claimant appealed to the Regional Social Court.
The State Social Court suspended the proceedings and referred the question to the Federal Constitutional Court for a decision as to whether Section 3 para. 2 sentence 2 no. 1 and Section 3 para. 2 sentence 3 in conjunction with para. 1 sentence 4 no. 2 AsylbLG are compatible with the Basic Law.
Federal Constitutional Court: The First Senate of the Federal Constitutional Court has now ruled that the regulations on basic benefits in the form of cash benefits under the Asylum Seekers Benefits Act are incompatible with the fundamental right to a minimum subsistence level in accordance with Article 1 (1) of the Basic Law in conjunction with Article 20 (1) of the Basic Law.
The fundamental right to a minimum subsistence level in accordance with Article 1 (1) of the Basic Law in conjunction with the welfare state principle of Article 20 (1) of the Basic Law is intended to guarantee every person in need of assistance the material conditions that are essential for their physical existence and for a minimum level of participation in social, cultural and political life.
The Federal Constitutional Court considers the amount of cash benefits granted under the AsylbLG to be manifestly inadequate, in particular because they have not been changed since 1993 despite considerable price increases in Germany.
Furthermore, the amount of the cash benefits had not been calculated in a comprehensible manner, nor was a realistic, needs-orientated and therefore currently viable calculation evident.
The legislator is obliged to immediately adopt a new regulation for the area of application of the Asylum Seekers' Benefits Act to ensure a humane minimum subsistence level.
Until they come into force, the Federal Constitutional Court has made a transitional arrangement in view of the importance of the basic benefits in securing livelihoods.
Accordingly, from 1 January 2011, the amount of cash benefits in the
The calculation of the benefits for asylum seekers within the scope of application of the Asylum Seekers Benefits Act is based on the provisions of the Second and Twelfth Books of the German Social Code.
This applies retroactively for benefits from 2011 that have not been definitively determined and for the future until the legislator fulfils its obligation to make new regulations.
Source: Federal Constitutional Court
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