A Side Job During Short-Time Work: What Gets Offset
When monthly income drops by several hundred euros, the thought of earning extra comes naturally. It is broadly permitted — but financially it often brings far less than expected, because pay from employment newly taken up during short-time work raises your actual pay and therefore cuts the allowance almost one for one.
The decisive distinction: old or new side job
§ 106 (3) SGB III regulates the offset unambiguously. Actual pay is increased by earnings from other employment, self-employment or work as a contributing family member that the employee took up while receiving the allowance. The moment the work was taken up is therefore the criterion that decides everything.
A side job you already held before short-time work began remains entirely exempt from offsetting. You may continue it unchanged without your allowance falling. Someone who has helped out at a small business at weekends for years keeps that income in full. Caution applies, though, if you increase your hours in that existing side job during short-time work — the additional part can be treated as newly taken up work.
The mini-job exemption no longer applies
During the pandemic there was a much-noticed special rule: pay from a mini-job newly taken up during short-time work was exempt from offsetting. That exemption sat in § 421c SGB III, was time-limited and expired on 30 June 2022. Since 1 July 2022 the basic rule of § 106 (3) SGB III applies again — including to mini-jobs. If you come across older guides in 2026 claiming otherwise, check when they were written.
In practice this means: a newly accepted mini-job paying €400 a month raises your actual pay by €400. The flat-rate net from actual pay rises accordingly, the net pay difference shrinks, and the allowance falls by roughly 60 per cent of the net increase. Of the €400 gross, what actually stays in your pocket is often no more than a two-figure sum.
A worked example
On €3,500 gross per month in tax class I with hours cut by 50 per cent, the allowance without extra earnings is around €626. Take on a new side job paying €400 gross and actual pay rises from €1,750 to €2,150. The net pay difference falls from around €1,043 to around €793, and only roughly €476 of allowance remains. You have earned €400 gross more but lost around €150 of allowance — in total your payout is only about €93 higher than without the side job. You can trace this directly in the short-time work calculator by filling in the field for a new side job.
There is a tax angle too: the extra earnings are fully taxable, while the allowance stays tax-free and works only through the progression proviso. You are therefore partly swapping a tax-free receipt for a taxable one. With a mini-job taxed at a flat rate by the employer that disadvantage falls away, but the offset against the allowance remains.
What employment law requires
Quite apart from the social law offset, you will normally need your employer's consent. Many employment contracts contain a notification or approval requirement for secondary work. A side job may only be refused where legitimate business interests stand in the way — work for a competitor, for instance, exceeding the maximum working time permitted by the Working Time Act, or an impairment of your performance in your main job.
Availability matters practically as well: short-time work can end at short notice or change in extent. A side job with fixed shifts may then clash with your main employment. Agree the most flexible hours you can and keep both employers openly informed about the situation.
Conclusion
Earning extra during short-time work is permitted, but it pays off financially above all where the side job predates the short-time work — then it stays exempt from offsetting. For newly taken-up work, mini-jobs included, considerably less remains in net terms than expected. Model the constellation beforehand in the short-time work calculator and compare the result with your regular net from the gross-to-net calculator. This article is general orientation and does not replace legal advice.