DESign inStart for free
Use case · For payroll software and payroll providers

Automate year-end changes in payroll

Pick up new ceilings and rates automatically before they apply.

At the turn of the year, the contribution ceilings (Beitragsbemessungsgrenzen), the compulsory insurance threshold (Versicherungspflichtgrenze) and the benefit-in-kind values (Sachbezugswerte) change, and often the average additional contribution too. In 2026, the contribution ceiling for health and long-term care insurance is €5,812.50 a month. Your payroll software queries each value for the relevant date and gets new values with their valid-from date once they are officially published.

1

Create a webhook for social security values, contribution rates and benefit-in-kind values, on the Pro plan and above.

2

When a message arrives, store the new value with its valid-from date in your own table.

3

Run payroll from the change date with the new value, and corrections for previous-year months with the old one.

Which values change at year end

The social security reference values (Rechengrößen der Sozialversicherung) come with their own ordinance every year, the benefit-in-kind values with an amendment to the Social Insurance Remuneration Ordinance (Sozialversicherungsentgeltverordnung). The Federal Ministry of Health announces the average additional contribution by November 1, and the Federal Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs announces factor F for midi-jobs (Midijobs) by the end of the year.

The status page shows which changes are coming next. The current year's values are on the contribution ceilings page.

What payroll software needs

  • Contribution ceilings for health, long-term care, pension and unemployment insurance, per month and per year.
  • The general and the special compulsory insurance threshold, for checking whether health insurance is mandatory.
  • Contribution rates with employer and employee shares, plus long-term care insurance by number of children.
  • Benefit-in-kind values for meals and accommodation.

Calculate by date, not by year

Calculate with the day you are running payroll for, not with the year. A correction for December that runs in February needs December's values. That is why every request takes a date or a year, and you get the history since 2015 in one call.

Without a webhook, a daily request to each of the three datasets is enough. That is about 90 requests a month and fits the free plan. More in Effective dates and validity.

The U1 and U2 levies (Umlagen) and the additional contribution of each health insurance fund depend on the fund and are not included.

What the call looks like

Example with the dataset Social security reference values. The response comes from the same code as the API.

api.quellenkontor.dev/v1/hr/rechengroessen?jahr=2026
Zur API-Doku →
curl "https://api.quellenkontor.dev/v1/hr/rechengroessen?jahr=2026" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $QK_KEY"
Antwort200 OK · JSON
{
  "datensatz": "rechengroessen",
  "jahr": 2026,
  "gueltig_ab": "2026-01-01",
  "gueltig_bis": "2026-12-31",
  "bbg_rv_west_monat": 8450,
  "bbg_rv_west_jahr": 101400,
  "bbg_rv_ost_monat": 8450,
  "bbg_rv_ost_jahr": 101400,
  "bbg_knappschaft_west_monat": 10400,
  "bbg_knappschaft_west_jahr": 124800,
  "bbg_knappschaft_ost_monat": 10400,
  "bbg_knappschaft_ost_jahr": 124800,
  "bbg_kv_monat": 5812.5,
  "bbg_kv_jahr": 69750,
  "jaeg_allgemein_jahr": 77400,
  "jaeg_besonders_jahr": 69750,
  "bezugsgroesse_west_monat": 3955,
  "bezugsgroesse_west_jahr": 47460,
  "bezugsgroesse_ost_monat": 3955,
  "bezugsgroesse_ost_jahr": 47460,
  "bbg_pv_monat": 5812.5,
  "bbg_pv_jahr": 69750,
  "rechtskreise_einheitlich": true,
  "rechtsgrundlage": "Sozialversicherungsrechengrößen-Verordnung 2026 vom 24.11.2025 (BGBl. 2025 I Nr. 278)",
  "quelle": {
    "titel": "Sozialversicherungsrechengrößen-Verordnung 2026 vom 24. November 2025 (BGBl. 2025 I Nr. 278)",
    "url": "https://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/svbezgrv_2026/BJNR1160A0025.html"
  },
  "lizenz": "Werte aus amtlichen Werken (§ 5 UrhG). Nutzung der Zusammenstellung nach den Nutzungsbedingungen von Quellenkontor.",
  "stand": "2026-09-23",
  "zitat": "Rechengrößen der Sozialversicherung 2026: Beitragsbemessungsgrenze der Kranken- und Pflegeversicherung 5.812,50 Euro im Monat, der Renten- und Arbeitslosenversicherung 8.450 Euro im Monat, Versicherungspflichtgrenze 77.400 Euro im Jahr. Rechtsgrundlage: Sozialversicherungsrechengrößen-Verordnung 2026 vom 24.11.2025. Quelle: Sozialversicherungsrechengrößen-Verordnung 2026 vom 24. November 2025 (BGBl. 2025 I Nr. 278), https://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/svbezgrv_2026/BJNR1160A0025.html. Daten: Quellenkontor (quellenkontor.dev).",
  "datenstand": "2026-09-24.15"
}

Frequently asked questions

When are next year's values available?

After the ordinances are officially published, usually in November or December. The weekly check adds them, and a webhook reports them the next morning.

Can I query values from earlier years?

Yes. The tables go back to 2015, and every request takes a date.

Do I need a paid plan for webhooks?

Yes, webhooks are available on the Pro plan and above. Without a webhook, you query the values regularly, for example once a day.

Datasets used

Social security reference values

Contribution ceilings, compulsory insurance threshold and reference value per year, West and East.

APIMCPyearly on January 1

Social security contribution rates

Health, pension, unemployment and long-term care insurance with employer and employee share.

APIMCPyearly and with every change

Meal and accommodation values

Official values for free meals and accommodation per month, day and meal.

APIMCPyearly on January 1

Related use cases

Check the mini-job limit: hours and hourly wage against the limit

A warning before more hours or a higher hourly wage push a mini-job (Minijob) over the limit.

Calculate a prorated salary by working days when someone joins or leaves

When someone joins or leaves mid-month, count the working days by state and prorate the salary.