Pflegegeld (cash care allowance) is money that the Pflegekasse (long-term care insurance fund) transfers every month if you are cared for at home by relatives, friends or neighbours. Pflegegeld is available from Pflegegrad (care grade) 2 – between 347 and 990 euros a month, depending on the Pflegegrad (as at July 2026). You can decide for yourself what to use the money for: for example as recognition for the person providing care, for travel costs or for help in the household.

Details

Pflegegeld under § 37 SGB XI is the benefit for care provided by private individuals. It is not invoiced and no receipts have to be submitted – the Pflegekasse pays a fixed monthly amount to the person in need of care, who is free to use it as they wish. In Berlin, 87 per cent of people in need of care are looked after at home, and 54 per cent exclusively by relatives (Landespflegeplan Berlin 2025). That makes Pflegegeld the most important benefit for households providing care in Berlin and Brandenburg.

How much is Pflegegeld?

• Pflegegrad 1: no Pflegegeld – instead an Entlastungsbetrag (monthly relief amount) of 131 euros a month
• Pflegegrad 2: 347 euros a month
• Pflegegrad 3: 599 euros a month
• Pflegegrad 4: 800 euros a month
• Pflegegrad 5: 990 euros a month

As at July 2026 (source: Bundesministerium für Gesundheit, overview of benefit amounts for 2026). The amounts were last increased on 1 January 2025. The next regular adjustment is currently planned for 1 January 2028.

Who receives Pflegegeld?

• You have at least Pflegegrad 2.
• You are looked after at home – not in a care home.
• The care is provided by private individuals: relatives, neighbours, friends, volunteers. They do not have to live in the same household.
• The care is „ensured in a suitable manner“. The Pflegekasse checks this through the advisory visit (see below).

Payment, tax and offsetting

• The Pflegekasse pays monthly in advance into the account of the person in need of care. The family decides for itself who the money is passed on to.
• Payment starts in the month in which the application for a Pflegegrad was made – even if the assessment takes place later. Applying early is therefore worthwhile.
• For the person in need of care, Pflegegeld is tax-free. If you pass it on to someone close to you who provides the care, it usually remains tax-free for them too (§ 3 Nr. 36 EStG).
• Pflegegeld continues to be paid during the first full calendar month of a hospital or rehabilitation stay; after that it is suspended.
• During Verhinderungspflege (respite care) or Kurzzeitpflege (short-term residential care), half the Pflegegeld continues to be paid for up to eight weeks a year; the first and the last day are paid in full.

The advisory visit is compulsory – and useful

Anyone receiving Pflegegeld has to provide evidence of a regular advisory visit under § 37 Abs. 3 SGB XI. Since 1 January 2026 a six-monthly cycle has applied uniformly to Pflegegrade 2 to 5 (previously every three months with Pflegegrad 4 and 5). With Pflegegrad 4 and 5 you may request additional advice voluntarily. The advice is free for you; it is provided by a care service, a recognised advice centre or a care adviser. Every second session may take place by video call.

If the evidence is not provided, the Pflegekasse may reduce or stop the Pflegegeld. Even so, do not see the appointment as a check-up: it is the best opportunity to review your care arrangements – many families hear there for the first time about support they have long been entitled to.

Pflegegeld is rarely everything you are entitled to

Pflegegeld can be combined with almost every other benefit:

• Pflegesachleistung (care benefits in kind) and Kombinationsleistung – a care service and Pflegegeld side by side, in proportion
• Entlastungsbetrag – an extra 131 euros a month, in every Pflegegrad
• Verhinderungspflege and Kurzzeitpflege – 3.539 euros a year for breaks
• Pflegehilfsmittel (care aids) – 42 euros a month for consumables, plus grants for adaptations
• Day and night care, which is paid in addition to Pflegegeld

Anyone who provides care for at least ten hours a week on at least two days and who is not in paid work for more than 30 hours also builds up pension entitlements through the Pflegekasse and is covered by accident insurance. There is more on this in the Pflege & Beruf (care and work) section (in German).

What to do?

1. Apply for a Pflegegrad. No Pflegegrad, no Pflegegeld. Call the Pflegekasse – that is the fund attached to your health insurer. How this works is explained under Pflegegrad & applications.
2. Choose the type of benefit. Tell the Pflegekasse in writing that you want Pflegegeld. You can change your mind at any time later.
3. Give your bank details and check the first decision letter. Check the Pflegegrad, the amount and the date payment starts. If there are mistakes, you have one month to lodge an appeal.
4. Arrange the advisory visit. Put the six-monthly dates in your calendar and choose a service you feel comfortable with – you are free to choose.
5. Work out whether a combination would be better value. If a care service comes regularly, the Kombinationsleistung can bring considerably more money.
6. Claim the additional benefits. You have to use the Entlastungsbetrag, Pflegehilfsmittel and Verhinderungspflege separately – they are not paid out automatically.

Where can you get help?

You do not have to sort this out on your own. The advice is free, independent and open to everyone:

• Pflegestützpunkte (care support points): Berlin has 36 Pflegestützpunkte, Brandenburg 19 Pflegestützpunkte with 27 branch offices. They give free, provider-neutral advice, and will visit you at home on request. Find a Pflegestützpunkt in your Bezirk (district) or Landkreis (county).
• Care advice from your Pflegekasse under § 7a SGB XI – also by telephone, with a written care plan on request.
• Free care courses for relatives (§ 45 SGB XI): practical techniques, legal matters, sharing experiences. You will find dates in Berlin and Brandenburg under Events.

All amounts as at July 2026. Legal basis: §§ 37, 38 SGB XI. Figures on care provision: Landespflegeplan Berlin 2025.