Planning for part-time work: How to organise your income, pension and old age provision

There are plenty of reasons that you might want to temporarily reduce your working hours to part-time, such as spending more time with your children or caring for relatives. In Germany, 40.1 percent of employees worked part-time hours in the third quarter of 2025, according to the Institute for Employment Research (Institut für Arbeitsmarkt- und Berufsforschung).

Part-time hours, however, mean more than just a reduced salary; they also affect the amount of pension a person receives. Because of that, it makes sense to plan the switch to part-time hours carefully.

Working out your part-time net salary

What reduction in hours can you afford? And does that match up with what you want? The Federal Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs provides a really useful tool (in German) for those planning to adjust their hours, the part-time calculator. It gives you an initial idea how much net salary you can expect to earn working part-time.

Due to Germany’s progressive tax system, reducing the number of hours you work each week could leave with more money than you might expect. Even though you are earning less, you are also paying fewer taxes.

It is also important to consider what you will do if you need to return to your original number of hours per week at a later date. The law can help here: workers can work part-time for a limited period and then return to working full-time if they so wish (known as Brückenteilzeit in German).

Part-time work is also an option during parental leave under certain circumstances. Parents are allowed to work for up to 32 hours a week (up to 30 hours a week for children born before 1 September 2021). After their parental leave is over, they are usually allowed to return to their normal working hours, provided no other agreement has been made.

Find out what your pension shortfall will be

You can find out from the German Pension Insurance (Deutsche Rentenversicherung) how earning less will affect your statutory pension entitlements. In general, times in which you were taking care of children count towards your pension, but if you are planning to work part-time over a longer period, you will not just be earning a lower salary, you will also usually be missing out on money in your government pension.

So it is important to plan ahead and ensure you have additional pension provisions:

• How much money will you likely need for your retirement?
• How high is your personal pension shortfall, taking into account times during which you weren’t able to earn as much money?
• What options are available to you to make up the shortfall?

Speak to your employer about a company pension and make use of capital-forming benefits (vermögenswirksame Leistungen).

It can also make sense to come to a financial agreement with your partner designed to compensate the shortfall, particularly if you are reducing your hours to care for the children you have together.

Making financial provisions for the future

Even when working part-time, you can build up a considerable sum over time by regularly investing small amounts. To begin, take stock:

• How much money do you already have saved for a rainy day?
• Do you have any other assets, such as property?
• Or debts?

This will provide you with a starting point: do you need to pay down debts, build an emergency fund or simply start saving. It is usually a good idea to pay off loans as quickly as possible to save on interest payments. It is also important to ensure you have an emergency fund. A good rule of thumb is to have enough money in your emergency fund to cover three months’ worth of expenses. This money should be in a savings account, ready to access whenever you need it.

And then you can get started, if you haven’t already – with a specific savings scheme account (known in German as a Sparplan). For just a few euros a month, you can pay into a savings fund, for example, and build up your savings little by little. You can also put this money towards your retirement savings. Whether it’s share, funds or insurance products: you should only invest in products you understand properly. Pay attention to what fees will be due and compare offers. Your bank will be happy to provide you with advice.