Minimum Wage 2026: Level, Exemptions and Enforcement
Since 1 January 2026 the statutory minimum wage in Germany has stood at €13.90 gross per hour. That is the largest single-step increase so far: it was previously €12.82, so the rise amounts to 8.42 percent. The legal basis is the fifth minimum wage adjustment ordinance of 5 November 2025, which follows a recommendation of the minimum wage commission. Official estimates suggest up to 6.6 million employees benefit from the increase.
The ordinance covers two adjustments at once. On 1 January 2027 the minimum wage rises to €14.60, a further 5.04 percent. Across both stages the wage floor grows by 13.88 percent compared with 2025. The two-step design is deliberate: businesses gain planning certainty and the adjustment is spread across two budget years. Anyone negotiating an employment contract today should already factor in the 2027 figure — particularly for hourly rates only just above the current floor.
What the minimum wage means per month
Converted to a full-time post of 40 weekly hours, the 2026 minimum wage corresponds to gross monthly pay of roughly €2,416 (13.90 × 40 × 4.345). Over a year that is about €28,990 gross. At 30 weekly hours the threshold is around €1,812 a month, at 20 weekly hours roughly €1,208. Whether your own salary sits above or below it is settled in one step by the hourly wage calculator, including exactly how many cents you are above or below the line.
The link to the mini-job threshold
Since 2022 the marginal earnings threshold has been dynamically tied to the minimum wage. The formula is: minimum wage × 130 ÷ 3, rounded up to whole euros. At €13.90 that produces an earnings limit of €603 a month, or €7,236 a year, for 2026. The reasoning is that a mini-job should permanently allow ten weekly hours at the minimum wage. Anyone regularly earning more slips into the transition zone — what happens there is shown by the midi-job calculator.
Who is not covered
The Minimum Wage Act contains a closed list of exemptions. Excluded are trainees in a recognised vocational training programme, for whom a minimum training allowance applies instead, and people under 18 without completed vocational training. Also outside the scope are mandatory internships forming part of a school, training or university curriculum, voluntary orientation and accompanying internships lasting up to three months, volunteers, and the long-term unemployed during the first six months of new employment. Conversely, the minimum wage applies without exception to mini-jobbers, part-time staff, seasonal workers and working students. On-call time must in principle also be paid at the minimum wage where the employee has to remain at the workplace or at a location determined by the employer. A frequent misunderstanding concerns tips: they are a voluntary payment by third parties and may not be counted towards the minimum wage.
What may be counted towards it
Only payments that constitute normal remuneration for the work performed may be counted. Proportionate additional payments qualify if they are paid out monthly and irrevocably. Payments serving a further purpose do not: night premiums, dirt and hazard allowances, capital-forming benefits or expense reimbursements. An hourly rate of €13.00 plus a night premium of €1.50 therefore does not satisfy the minimum wage.
How compliance is enforced
Responsibility lies with the customs administration's financial control of undeclared work unit. It inspects businesses both on suspicion and at random, examines payroll records and interviews employees on site. For mini-jobs and for sectors with an elevated risk of abuse — construction, hospitality, haulage, meat processing, building cleaning and exhibition construction among them — a special recording duty applies: the start, end and duration of daily working time must be documented within seven days and kept for two years. Deliberately paying below the minimum wage risks a fine of up to €500,000 and exclusion from public contracts.
What to do if you are paid too little
The entitlement to the minimum wage is inalienable: it cannot be undercut by contract or waived, and contractual limitation periods do not apply to it. Claims only lapse after three years, counted to the end of the year. The first step is always your own record of working times — handwritten, in a spreadsheet or via an app. Next comes a written request to the employer quantifying the shortfall precisely. If that leads nowhere, you can turn to the responsible federal ministry's minimum wage helpline, an advice centre, or directly to the labour court.
Do the arithmetic first
Before you act, prepare your figures cleanly. What matters is not the monthly salary but the ratio of pay to hours actually worked — unpaid extra work included. That is precisely what the hourly wage calculator is built for: it shows the decisive hourly rate, the gross monthly pay that would have to be paid for your hours, and the difference in euros and cents. The calculation does not replace legal advice, but it gives you the basis for a factual conversation.