Operating cost accounting

If you already receive benefits according to SGB II, please submit your additional operating costs claim. A separate application is not required. Please note that a credit balance must also be reported.

If you are in need of assistance due to the high additional claim, you can of course contact the Leipzig Job Centre as the basic income support provider in the Leipzig city area. In this case, it is important to know that the Leipzig Job Centre can only grant social benefits in accordance with SGB II if the applicant or the community of need is determined to be in need of assistance within the meaning of SGB II and is therefore entitled to claim. This can also only be the case for one month - namely the month in which the back payment of operating costs is due.

An application must be submitted in accordance with SGB II with the necessary attachments (e.g. proof of income / bank statements / tenancy agreement) as well as the supplementary payment calculation leading to the need for assistance. The list is not exhaustive, as different additional documents may be required depending on the individual case (e.g. in the case of children, maintenance obligations, other income, living in your own home, etc.).

The following points should therefore be noted:

• An application must be made in accordance with SGB II.
• The result of the application assessment must confirm the need for assistance for the period applied for.
• The application must be submitted no later than the month in which the additional payment is due, as an application for benefits under SGB II always (and only) goes back to the first of the month in question.
• Recipients of an old-age pension can apply for basic security benefits in accordance with SGB XII.

In order to claim benefits under SGB II, you must be in need of assistance within the meaning of SGB II.

This means that the monthly need cannot be covered, or cannot be fully covered, by incoming income or existing assets (taking into account the allowances).

If there is evidence of a need for assistance for the application period (in this case the month in which the additional operating cost payment is due), the additional operating cost payment will be reviewed. This is generally based on the so-called reasonable consumption. This is used to determine whether the applicant has been heating appropriately or whether the consumption is above the reasonable limits and cannot be justified even in the context of a case-by-case assessment (e.g. taking into account the location of the flat, the condition of the house, the year of construction, the insulation, the vacancy in the house, etc.).

The starting point in this respect is the so-called non-assessment limits depending on the number of persons within the benefit community with the maximum permitted size of the residential unit.

If the consumption costs exceed these non-audit limits, a case-by-case audit is carried out.

However, it is important to know that it is not about the costs per unit, but about the appropriateness of the documented consumption values. This means that the applicant(s) do not ultimately have to fear having to bear the global rise in energy costs.

An application under SGB II may also be rejected for other reasons (e.g. overriding benefits; local lack of competence; income to cover needs; assets above the allowance limits). This list is not exhaustive.

An increase in advance operating cost payments is only permitted in connection with an operating cost statement. The increase in advance operating cost payments is usually based on a cost increase or a change in consumption behaviour. If the consumption behaviour is economical or the cost increase is comprehensible, the increased advance payments (or instalments) are usually accepted.

A flat-rate increase in advance payments of operating costs without the existence of a statement of operating costs usually does not provide a sufficient basis and is therefore unlawful. In this case, the increased advance payments (or instalments) cannot be accepted by the job centre. The next statement of operating costs must be awaited.

If you have concluded a contract with a gas supplier, the contractual terms regarding the adjustment of advance payments are decisive here.

An application for basic security benefits in accordance with SGB II can be submitted from the comfort of your own home via our platform www.jobcenter.digital can be provided. You can find out how to use the platform here on our homepage at Service - jobcenter.digital inform.

If you prefer to print out your application and send it in, you can also download all the application documents from our Service - Download Centre or directly via the download centre of the Federal Employment Agency download.

You can also find a good guide to the initial application here on our website at Cash benefits - new customer.