Citizen service
Elterngeld (parental allowance) makes up for the loss of earnings when parents stay home to look after a child after the birth. ElterngeldDigital has been providing parents in Berlin, Bremen, Hamburg, Rhineland-Palatinate, Saxony, and Thuringia with electronic help in applying for parental allowance. More Federal States will follow.. In order to make the nationwide service of the Federal Ministry for Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth user-friendly, the wirksam regieren team carried out interviews and user tests with parents-to-be. Building on the findings, the ElterngeldDigital portal is being redesigned.
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Online applications
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Access to parental allowance should be simple
Parental allowance makes up for the loss of earnings when parents stay home to look after a child after the birth. It safeguards the livelihood of families and helps mothers and fathers to strike a better balance between family and career. Parents access parental allowance by submitting an application to the competent parental allowance office. As different models of parental allowance are possible and combinable, applying for parental allowance is often complex and involves gathering together a considerable amount of information. The digital form-filling assistant ElterngeldDigital has provided practical help in completing the parental allowance application since October 2018. It is intended to help parents-to-be to receive parental allowance quickly and as simply as possible.
Parents-to-be test and help to make ElterngeldDigital better
In order to make the nationwide services of the Federal Ministry for Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth more user-friendly, the wirksam regieren team carried out interviews and user tests with parents-to-be. The portal and its functionality were tested by parents-to-be and citizens’ ideas incorporated in order to further develop the portal.
Easy-to-understand information, clear structures and helpful examples offer the greatest help to parents-to-be
The interviews and user tests not only revealed how parents-to-be use the portal but also possible ways of improving its operability. Furthermore, the interviews provided important information on the situation of parents-to-be, which will flow directly into the further development of ElterngeldDigital. For example, the concerns they have when the address and telephone number of the employer is requested in the application form or uncertainty concerning the best parental allowance in each individual case.
Based on the findings, the ElterngeldDigital portal will be redesigned and made available to parents.
on behalf of the Federal Ministry for Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth (BMFSFJ)