Germany apprentice minimum pay 2026

API All four training years as REST API, JSON and CSV, calculated from the start of training and backed by the legal source.

The apprentice minimum pay (Mindestausbildungsvergütung) for training that starts in 2026 is €724 a month in the first year, €854 in the second, €977 in the third and €1,014 in the fourth year (§ 17 Abs. 2 BBiG). The amounts of the starting year apply for the whole training. Lower pay under a collective agreement only applies if the employer is bound by it.

Employees who are not in training are covered by the minimum wage. Breaks for apprentices under 18 are shown in the rest breaks calculator.

Last checked against the sources on September 24, 2026. Next expected change: notice for training starting in 2027 by November 1, 2026.

REST /v1/hr/mindestausbildungsverguetungMCP hr_mindestausbildungsverguetungCLI qk mindestausbildungsverguetung

The apprentice minimum pay (Mindestausbildungsvergütung) under § 17 BBiG for the first to fourth year of training. What counts is the year in which the training starts: an apprentice who starts in 2024 still gets the amount of the 2024 cohort in the third year. The rule has been in the Vocational Training Act (BBiG) since 2020 and has been updated every year by official notice since 2024. Lower pay under a collective agreement only applies if the employer is bound by it.

Training starting in 2026

Minimum pay in the first year of training: €724 per month
Minimum pay in the second year of training: €854 per month
Minimum pay in the third year of training: €977 per month

Source: § 17 Abs. 2 BBiG, official notices on the minimum pay in the Federal Law Gazette (Bundesgesetzblatt)
License: Values from official works (§ 5 UrhG). Use of the compilation under the Quellenkontor terms of use.
Updates: yearly, announced by November 1
Coverage: Germany, training starting in 2020 or later

A value doesn't match the official source? Report an error. We check against the primary source and document every correction in the changelog.

api.quellenkontor.dev/v1/hr/mindestausbildungsverguetung?beginn=2026-08-01&ausbildungsjahr=2

Zur API-Doku →

curl "https://api.quellenkontor.dev/v1/hr/mindestausbildungsverguetung?beginn=2026-08-01&ausbildungsjahr=2" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $QK_KEY"

import { Quellenkontor } from "@quellenkontor/sdk";

const qk = new Quellenkontor(process.env.QK_KEY);
const daten = await qk.hr.mindestausbildungsverguetung({ beginn: "2026-08-01", ausbildungsjahr: 2 });

import os
from quellenkontor import Quellenkontor

qk = Quellenkontor(api_key=os.environ["QK_KEY"])
daten = qk.hr.mindestausbildungsverguetung(beginn="2026-08-01", ausbildungsjahr=2)

$ qk mindestausbildungsverguetung --beginn 2026-08-01 --ausbildungsjahr 2

{
  "name": "hr_mindestausbildungsverguetung",
  "arguments": {
    "beginn": "2026-08-01",
    "ausbildungsjahr": 2
  }
}

This is how an agent calls the tool. Server setup is described in the MCP docs.

Antwort200 OK · JSON

{
  "datensatz": "mindestausbildungsverguetung",
  "vorlaeufig": false,
  "werte": {
    "ausbildungsjahr_1": 724,
    "ausbildungsjahr_2": 854,
    "ausbildungsjahr_3": 977,
    "ausbildungsjahr_4": 1014
  },
  "bestandteile": [
    {
      "id": "ausbildungsjahr_1",
      "name": "Mindestvergütung im ersten Ausbildungsjahr",
      "gruppe": "Mindestvergütung je Monat",
      "einheit": "euro_monat",
      "wert": 724,
      "gueltig_ab": "2026-01-01",
      "gueltig_bis": null,
      "rechtsgrundlage": "§ 17 Abs. 2 Satz 1 Nr. 1 und Satz 2 bis 6 BBiG, Bekanntmachung vom 7. Oktober 2025",
      "quelle": {
        "titel": "Bekanntmachung zur Fortschreibung der Höhe der Mindestvergütung für Berufsausbildungen nach dem Berufsbildungsgesetz (2026) vom 7. Oktober 2025 (BGBl. 2025 I Nr. 235)",
        "url": "https://www.recht.bund.de/bgbl/1/2025/235/VO.html"
      },
      "hinweis": "Fortschreibung nach § 17 Abs. 2 Satz 2 bis 4 BBiG, auf volle Euro gerundet.",
      "naechster_wert": null
    },
    {
      "id": "ausbildungsjahr_2",
      "name": "Mindestvergütung im zweiten Ausbildungsjahr",
      "gruppe": "Mindestvergütung je Monat",
      "einheit": "euro_monat",
      "wert": 854,
      "gueltig_ab": "2026-01-01",
      "gueltig_bis": null,
      "rechtsgrundlage": "§ 17 Abs. 2 Satz 1 Nr. 2 BBiG, Bekanntmachung vom 7. Oktober 2025",
      "quelle": {
        "titel": "Bekanntmachung zur Fortschreibung der Höhe der Mindestvergütung für Berufsausbildungen nach dem Berufsbildungsgesetz (2026) vom 7. Oktober 2025 (BGBl. 2025 I Nr. 235)",
        "url": "https://www.recht.bund.de/bgbl/1/2025/235/VO.html"
      },
      "hinweis": "724 Euro zuzüglich 18 Prozent (854,32 Euro), auf volle Euro gerundet, ab 0,50 Euro aufwärts (§ 17 Abs. 2 Satz 4 und 7 BBiG).",
      "naechster_wert": null
    }
  ],
  "hinweise": [
    "Maßgeblich ist das Jahr, in dem die Ausbildung beginnt, auch für das zweite bis vierte Ausbildungsjahr."
  ],
  "lizenz": "Werte aus amtlichen Werken (§ 5 UrhG). Nutzung der Zusammenstellung nach den Nutzungsbedingungen von Quellenkontor.",
  "stand": "2026-09-24",
  "beginn": "2026-08-01",
  "ausbildungsjahr": 2,
  "mindestverguetung_monat": 854,
  "zitat": "Mindestvergütung im 2. Ausbildungsjahr bei Ausbildungsbeginn am 01.08.2026: 854 Euro im Monat. Maßgeblich ist das Jahr des Ausbildungsbeginns; eine niedrigere tarifliche Vergütung gilt nur bei Tarifbindung. Rechtsgrundlage: § 17 Abs. 2 und 3 BBiG. Quelle: Bekanntmachung zur Fortschreibung der Höhe der Mindestvergütung für Berufsausbildungen nach dem Berufsbildungsgesetz (2026) vom 7. Oktober 2025 (BGBl. 2025 I Nr. 235), https://www.recht.bund.de/bgbl/1/2025/235/VO.html. Daten: Quellenkontor (quellenkontor.dev).",
  "datenstand": "2026-09-24.8"
}

Response shortened. All parameters and response fields are in the Apprentice pay reference.

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Apprentice minimum pay 2026

As of September 25, 2026.

Legal citations stay in German, exactly as they appear in the official sources.

Component	Value	Valid	Legal basis	Source
Minimum pay in the first year of training	€724 per month	from January 1, 2026	§ 17 Abs. 2 Satz 1 Nr. 1 und Satz 2 bis 6 BBiG, Bekanntmachung vom 7. Oktober 2025	Source
Minimum pay in the second year of training	€854 per month	from January 1, 2026	§ 17 Abs. 2 Satz 1 Nr. 2 BBiG, Bekanntmachung vom 7. Oktober 2025	Source
Minimum pay in the third year of training	€977 per month	from January 1, 2026	§ 17 Abs. 2 Satz 1 Nr. 3 BBiG, Bekanntmachung vom 7. Oktober 2025	Source
Minimum pay in the fourth year of training	€1,014 per month	from January 1, 2026	§ 17 Abs. 2 Satz 1 Nr. 4 BBiG, Bekanntmachung vom 7. Oktober 2025	Source

Apprentice minimum pay by start of training since 2020

What counts is the start of training: the amounts for that period also apply in the second to fourth year of training (§ 17 Abs. 2 Sätze 1 und 6 BBiG). For training that started by July 31, 2024, the increases apply without rounding; from August 1, 2024, they are rounded to full euros. Contracts concluded by December 31, 2019 are exempt (§ 106 Abs. 1 Satz 1 BBiG). Newest first.

Start of training	1st year	2nd year	3rd year	4th year	Source
2026	€724 per month	€854 per month	€977 per month	€1,014 per month	Source
2025	€682 per month	€805 per month	€921 per month	€955 per month	Source
August 1 to December 31, 2024	€649 per month	€766 per month	€876 per month	€909 per month	Source
January 1 to July 31, 2024	€649 per month	€765.82 per month	€876.15 per month	€908.60 per month	Source
2023	€620 per month	€731.60 per month	€837 per month	€868 per month	Source
2022	€585 per month	€690.30 per month	€789.75 per month	€819 per month	Source
2021	€550 per month	€649 per month	€742.50 per month	€770 per month	Source
2020	€515 per month	€607.70 per month	€695.25 per month	€721 per month	Source

Rules from statutes and administrative guidance

Training companies must pay appropriate compensation that rises at least once a year as the training progresses. Pay below the minimum is not appropriate (§ 17 Abs. 1 and 2 BBiG).
The minimum pay of the calendar year in which the training starts applies, also for the second to fourth year of training (§ 17 Abs. 2 Satz 1 and 6 BBiG).
Pay under a collective agreement that binds the training company under § 3 Abs. 1 TVG is appropriate even below the minimum. After the agreement expires, it continues to apply to existing apprenticeships until a new collective agreement replaces it (§ 17 Abs. 3 BBiG).
Without a binding collective agreement, pay above the minimum is usually still not appropriate if it is more than 20% below the relevant collectively agreed pay (§ 17 Abs. 4 BBiG).
In part-time vocational training, pay may be reduced by at most the same percentage as the daily or weekly working time, and it does not have to keep rising for the extended training period (§ 17 Abs. 5 BBiG).

The API returns these statements in the regeln field, so software and agents can display them.

As JSON and CSV

Every request returns JSON. The history since 2015 is also available as a CSV file with format=csv, and with trennzeichen=semikolon it fits Excel with German regional settings. More in Responses and CSV.

Terminal

curl "https://api.quellenkontor.dev/v1/hr/mindestausbildungsverguetung/verlauf?format=csv&trennzeichen=semikolon" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $QK_KEY" -o mindestausbildungsverguetung.csv

Parameters

Parameters	Type	Meaning
`beginn`date	date	Start of training in the format YYYY-MM-DD, from 2020-01-01. Defaults to today; required for the 2nd to 4th training year.
`ausbildungsjahr`integer	integer	Training year 1 to 4. Without it, you get all four amounts. From the 2nd year on, only together with beginn.
`bestandteil`text	text	Return and cite only this component, for example for a single question (optional). Allowed values are the component ids.

All response fields with types, allowed values, defaults and error cases are in the Apprentice pay reference.

Questions about this dataset

What is the apprentice minimum pay in 2026?

For training that starts in 2026: €724 a month in the first year, €854 in the second, €977 in the third and €1,014 in the fourth year of training.

How much does an apprentice who started in 2025 get in the second year?

At least €805 a month, the second-year amount of the 2025 cohort. The higher amount for training that starts in 2026 does not apply.

Does the new amount of the current year apply in the second training year?

No. The year in which the training started still counts (§ 17 Abs. 2 BBiG). An apprentice who started in 2025 gets the second-year amount of the 2025 cohort in the second year, even if it is 2026 by then.

Why are the amounts for training that started by July 2024 not rounded?

For training that starts by July 31, 2024, the old version of § 17 BBiG applies, without a rounding rule for the increases (§ 106 Abs. 1 Satz 2 BBiG). Rounding to full euros only applies to training that starts on or after August 1, 2024. Rounded figures would be partly higher and partly lower: €695 instead of €695.25 or €690 instead of €690.30 would fall below the minimum.

Can a collective agreement pay less?

Yes, if the collective agreement applies to the training company: when the company is bound by it or when it has been declared generally binding (§ 17 Abs. 3 BBiG, §§ 3 and 5 TVG). A reference in the training contract is not enough.

How often is the dataset updated?

Yearly, announced by November 1. We check the data against the official sources every week, and every change is logged in the changelog. On the Pro plan, a webhook notifies your server.

Germany apprentice minimum pay 2026

Apprentice minimum pay 2026

Apprentice minimum pay by start of training since 2020

Rules from statutes and administrative guidance

As JSON and CSV

Parameters

Questions about this dataset

More on Apprentice pay

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