1. Decisions of the Federal Social Court on basic income support under the German Social Code, Book II (SGB II) and on employment promotion law (SGB III)
1.1 – BSG, judgment of November 29, 2022 – B 4 AS 64/21 R
Basic income support for job seekers – provisional approval – final decision – determination of zero entitlement – submission of further documents in legal proceedings – preclusion
Federal Social Court (BSG): Self-employed individuals are entitled to Hartz IV benefits after missing a deadline
Guiding principle of the editor of Tacheles e. V.:
If self-employed individuals have missed the deadline set by the job center for submitting their documents and only submitted them during the legal proceedings, this is no reason to completely deny Hartz IV benefits and demand repayment of the unemployment benefit II already paid.
Guidance note from the editor of Tacheles e. V.:
Section 41a Paragraph 3 Sentence 4 of the German Social Code, Book II (SGB II) has no material preclusive effect.
Source: www.rechtrecht-im-internet.de
1.2 – BSG, judgment of November 29, 2022 – B 11 AL 33/21 R
Unemployment benefit entitlement – waiting period upon termination of a vocational integration measure – linkage to a waiting period in case of refusal – requirement for proper notification of legal consequences – warning function – invalidity if the start of the waiting period is not specified
Guiding principle of the editor of Tacheles e. V.:
A notification of legal consequences is incomplete and therefore invalid if it does not contain any reference to the commencement of an impending suspension period (similarly, Lower Saxony-Bremen Higher Social Court, judgment of May 8, 2018 – L 11 AL 67/16 – info also 2018, 209, and agreeing with this, Coseriu in Eicher/Schlegel, SGB III, § 159 marginal note 461, as of May 2019; Lüdtke/Schaumberg in Böttiger/Körtek/Schaumberg, SGB III, 3rd edition 2019, § 159 marginal note 25; Lower Saxony-Bremen Higher Social Court, judgment of June 23, 2021 – L 11 AL 95/19 – info also 2022, 28).
Source: www.rechtrecht-im-internet.de
Legal tip: Attorney Dr. Jens-Torsten Lehmann comments on
the missing information regarding the start of the waiting period in light of the Federal Social Court (BSG) ruling of November 29, 2022 – B 11 AL 33/21 R: When are review applications worthwhile?
A bombshell from Kassel:
The Federal Social Court (BSG) declares the legal consequences instructions of employment agencies in suspension notices invalid.
By Jens-Torsten Lehmann, reprinted in info also 02/2023
2. Decisions of the State Social Courts on basic income support under the German Social Code, Book II (SGB II)
2.1 – LSG Saxony-Anhalt, decision of 02.02.2023 – L 2 AS 12/23 B ER
Guiding principles
1. A loan for rent arrears relating to an apartment presupposes, at least in principle, entitlement to benefits for this accommodation.
2. A loan should only be granted (§ 22 para. 8 sentence 2 SGB II) if the imminent homelessness cannot otherwise be averted. Provided that suitable new accommodation has been found, benefit recipients can be referred to this alternative, at least if the rent arrears are due to their own conduct.
3. When exercising discretion, even if it is limited (§ 22 para. 8 sentence 2 SGB II), it must be considered whether the loan can contribute to securing the apartment on a permanent basis, which may not be guaranteed, among other things, if there are strong indications of abusive behavior, lack of willingness to help oneself and lack of contractual loyalty.
Source: www.socialgerichtsabilities.de
2.2 – LSG Saxony-Anhalt, Judgment of 09.02.2023 – L 4 AS 99/19
Guiding Principles
1. The KdUH guideline of the city of Dessau-Roßlau, applicable from 1 May 2014, based on the methods and results report from March 2014 in the version of the recalculation in the weighting procedure, methods report from October 2022, is based on a coherent concept for a two-person household.
2. To ensure the representativeness of the collected data for a housing cost concept, the (local) rental housing market must be realistically represented. The data collection must be as similar as possible to the target population in its composition and in the structure of the relevant characteristics.
3. A housing cost assessment (KdUH) concept is not representative if institutional landlords are not represented in the rent survey according to their market share, but rather significantly overrepresented compared to private landlords. This deficiency can be corrected by a weighted recalculation – differentiated by net rent and operating costs – in which small private landlords on the one hand and large institutional landlords on the other, as well as subsidized housing (so-called social housing), are taken into account according to their actual share of the rental housing market.
4. Even though the "projection" of new rental contracts in the concept is (currently) not comprehensible due to the lack of a reference value, this does not invalidate the concept. To ensure that the rental prices determined from existing rents allow recipients of basic income support to actually rent housing at the stated prices, a comparison with advertised rents is possible.
Source: www.socialgerichtsabilities.de
Legal tip:
See also LSG Saxony-Anhalt, judgment of 09.02.2023 – L 4 AS 340/21, L 4 AS 343/21 and L 4 AS 179/19
2.3 – LSG Saxony-Anhalt, Judgment of 15.09.2022 – L 5 AS 294/18
Guiding Principles
1. The binding effect of an undertaking to cover the expenses for the new accommodation does not end with the move or after the expiry of the approval period.
2. The assurance remains valid until a significant change in the factual or legal situation occurs.
3. The mere entry into force of a new accommodation directive does not constitute a change in the legal situation.
4. If the assessment of rental values was carried out before the granting of the assurance, the subsequent evaluation of these values and the resulting creation of a "conclusive concept" does not constitute a change in the circumstances.
Source: www.socialgerichtsabilities.de
Legal tip:
See also Saxon State Social Court, judgment of February 6, 2020, L 3 AS 741/17
2.4 – LSG Bayern, decision of 31.03.2023 – L 11 AS 78/23 B ER
Guiding principles:
In the event of incorrect handling of a case by the social court, the costs of an appeal procedure may not be borne by the parties involved, according to a general legal principle derived from cost regulations, and may therefore be imposed on the public treasury.
Source: www.socialgerichtsabilities.de
3. Decisions on asylum law and the Asylum Seekers' Benefits Act (AsylbLG)
3.1 – Social Court Frankfurt am Main – Decision of 13 March 2023 – Case No.: S 30 AY 24/22
Legal norms: Section 3 AsylbLG, Section 3a AsylbLG, Section 86b Paragraph 2 Sentence 2 SGG – Keywords: Standard benefit level 1, benefits according to Sections 3, 3a AsylbLG, cost decision, Social Court Frankfurt am Main
Guidance note by the editor of Tacheles e. V.
1. Even with basic benefits (§ 3a AsylbLG), a needs-based allowance of 1 must be granted to single persons.
2. In the Chamber's view, there are good reasons to believe that Section 3a Paragraph 1 No. 2b) of the Asylum Seekers' Benefits Act (AsylbLG) or Section 3a Paragraph 2 No. 2b) of the Asylum Seekers' Benefits Act (AsylbLG) could also be unconstitutional
3. Further, Frerichs in: Schlegel/Voelzke, jurisPK-SGB XII, 3rd ed., § 3a AsylbLG (as of 28.12.2022), para. 44.18: “The decision of the Federal Constitutional Court of 19.10.2022 (- 1 BvL 3/21 -) undoubtedly also establishes the unconstitutionality of § 3a para. 1 no. 2b) AsylbLG or § 3a para. 2 no. 2 b) AsylbLG” and that the applicant is to be granted benefits at standard benefit level 1.
Source: Attorney Sven Adam
4. Miscellaneous information on Hartz IV, social assistance, asylum law, housing benefit law and other legal codes
4.1 – LSG NRW: Direct payment of accommodation costs for a room in a homeless shelter
The subject of the following decision is the placement of a homeless person in a homeless shelter and the subsequent order for direct payment of the costs to be incurred for the accommodation to the assigning municipality.
More information: www.wolterskluwer.com
4.2 – Appropriate gross rents excluding utilities for recipients of citizen's income and social assistance
New guidelines for accommodation costs in the Saarbrücken Regional Association apply retroactively to February 1st of this year.
Further information: www.regionalverband-saarbruecken.de
Note:
The new KdU values, which are valid retroactively to February 1, 2023, are available online at www.regionalverband.de/regionalverbandsrecht under the heading "Work and Social Affairs".
4.3 – What sanctions are imposed when receiving basic income support (Hartz IV)? What are the consequences of a breach of obligations while receiving benefits? An article by attorney Jörg Schubert
Continue reading at www.anwalt.de
Author of the case law ticker: Tacheles editor Detlef Brock.
Source: Tacheles case law ticker
