Parents in Saxony have to wait an average of almost two months for their application for parental allowance to be processed. In the first half of 2025, the average processing time was 56 days - in 2020 it was 43 days. This was the result of a survey conducted by Deutsche Presse-Agentur among the Ministry of Social Affairs and all independent cities and districts.
Longest in Chemnitz, shortest in Central Saxony
It takes particularly long in Chemnitz: parents there recently had to wait an average of 76 days, and even 84 days between January and July of this year. In the districts of Vogtland (68 days), Sächsische Schweiz-Osterzgebirge (61 days) and the Erzgebirge and Görlitz (60 days each), procedures also take over two months. By contrast, things are moving much faster in Central Saxony with an average of 36 days, followed by Northern Saxony with 38 days.
In the other major cities, the situation has recently eased somewhat: Leipzig recently recorded 52 days after a high of 63 days in 2023. This is an improvement - and is now even slightly below the national average. In Dresden, the processing time is currently around 44 days, according to the state capital.
Processing times in comparison - from long to short:
- Chemnitz: around 76 days
- Vogtlandkreis: around 68 days
- Landkreis Sächsische Schweiz-Osterzgebirge: about 61 days
- Erzgebirgskreis: about 60 days
- Landkreis Görlitz: about 60 days
- Landkreis Zwickau: about 56 days
- Landkreis Meißen: around 54 days
- Leipzig: around 52 days
- Dresden: around 44 days
- Landkreis Leipzig: around 43 days
- Landkreis Bautzen: around 42 days
- Landkreis Nordsachsen: around 38 days
- Landkreis Mittelsachsen: around 36 days
The information is taken from the responses of the respective administrative districts and independent cities. The processing times are rough averages.
Fewer applications, similar distribution
According to the Ministry of Social Affairs, the number of parental applications in Saxony has fallen sharply in recent years: in 2020 there were still more than 50,800, in 2024 only around 38,500. The distribution has hardly changed: around two thirds of applications come from mothers, one third from fathers. On average, women receive parental allowance for around 14 months, men for around three months.
The Ministry of Social Affairs cites missing documents, the complexity of the applications and staff shortages as reasons for long processing times. Several cities and districts are now relying on digitalization and online applications to speed up the process.
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