Why letters from the Jobcenter are important for Ukrainian refugees in Germany and how not to lose years of insurance experience
After being forced to move to Germany, thousands of Ukrainians found themselves in the social protection system, which operates according to its own rules, unusual for our experience. For many, receiving Bürgergeld is the only way to provide basic needs in a new country. However, few refugees consider that even periods of unemployment when a person receives this support can affect their future pension. Official letters from the Jobcenter play a crucial role in this process.
What does the letter from the Jobcenter about the transfer of data to Rentenversicherung mean
Official letters from the Jobcenter not only record that you have received help, but also confirm the data and pass it on to the pension fund as part of your insurance record. For those who plan to stay in Germany, or even return to Ukraine, but later apply for a German pension, these documents may have weight after many years, and losing them means the risk of erasing these periods from the pension history.
Known in Germany as an everyday document, the piece of paper from the Jobcenter with the heading of the transfer of information to Deutsche Rentenversicherung is actually an important legal document, it records your work breaks – in particular periods of unemployment – in the pension system. The completeness of your insurance history and future access to the minimum pension or social security in case of disability may depend on whether you keep this letter.
The official document sent by post to persons receiving Bürgergeld (formerly ALG II) has the heading: “Nachweis über die Meldung von Zeiten des Bezuges von Arbeitslosengeld II / Bürgergeld an die gesetzliche Rentenversicherung”. This means: it is confirmed that the Jobcenter has transferred information about the period of your stay on social assistance to the state pension fund. And although you did not work or make pension contributions at that time, the Deutsche Rentenversicherung system will count these months as credited periods (Anrechnungszeiten) – they will be part of your insurance history.
According to German pension law (§58 Abs.1 Nr.6 SGB VI), even periods without active employment can affect access to pension rights if they are officially recorded as “social insurance periods”.
Why should these letters be preserved?
After the Jobcenter transfers the information to Deutsche Rentenversicherung, you receive a letter, which is the only physical proof of this action. In the event that in the future there is a need to apply for a pension or prove continuity of service, this document will serve as confirmation. In databases, failures, loss of data or incomplete transfer of information are possible – in this case, a paper sheet becomes a decisive argument.
The document usually looks like a standard A4 sheet with the Jobcenter logo, addressed to a specific person. It contains your name, registration number, the deadline for receiving Bürgergeld and an indication that the data has been transferred to Rentenversicherung.
What to do with such a letter
It should be kept in a folder with other documents related to your stay in Germany. It is recommended to make a copy or scan. If you change your place of residence, move to another city or plan to apply for a pension, you should definitely have this letter with you. It can become the basis for confirming insurance experience.
If you know that you have received Bürgergeld but have not received a confirmation letter, you should submit a written request to the Jobcenter. The wording used for this is: “Anforderung einer Bestächtigung der geldleten Anrechnungszeiten” — a request for confirmation of the periods transferred to the pension fund.
What periods are included in the pensionable service
The calculation may include:
– Time to receive Bürgergeld for subsistence (Lebensunterhalt)
– Housing and utility payments (Kosten der Unterkunft, KdU)
– In exceptional cases, even periods of partial payments during sanctions, if they lasted
Although pension contributions are not paid for you during this period, the very fact of being on social assistance is recorded as “credited time”. This is important if you are counting on a basic pension or want to get closer to the minimum length of service to be entitled to benefits.
How does this affect the size of the future pension
One year of Bürgergeld usually gives between 0.03 and 0.06 pension points (Entgeltpunkte). In financial terms, this corresponds to €3-6 per month towards your pension. By comparison, the average worker paying contributions from the average salary receives 1 full pension point per year – which adds around €37 per month to their future pension.
This is not much, but such periods can become decisive in several cases:
– If you lack the minimum 5-year experience to receive a pension
– If you draw up a pension due to loss of working capacity
– If you have to apply for social assistance for pensioners (Grundsicherung)
Why it is important not to throw away these documents even after years
The German pension system is strictly regulated, but it is not immune to mistakes. Your right to a pension depends not only on the accumulated points, but also on the correctness of the record of seniority. Letters from the Jobcenter are a kind of bridge between social services and pension insurance – and this bridge should not be burned carelessly.
If you live in Germany with interruptions in your work history, if you depended on Bürgergeld for at least a few months, or if you do not plan to stay in Germany until old age and later apply for a pension from abroad – the saved letters may be the only proof that the time without contributions was still included in the system.
So the letters from the Jobcenter with the heading of the transfer of data to the Rentenversicherung are your insurance diary, a fragment of the pension biography that no one will create for you, unless you keep it yourself. In a world where decades of work may not guarantee a dignified old age, every fixed period becomes important, even when you didn’t work.
