German Disability Reform Hearing Sparks Criticism as New Co-Payment Rules Set for 2027

Germany’s parliament will hold a hearing on June 22, 2026, to discuss amendments to the Disability Equality Act (BGG), but advocacy groups are already demanding major changes. Organisations including Lebenshilfe and the German Institute for Human Rights argue the draft bill only mandates “reasonable accommodations” on a case-by-case basis, stopping short of binding requirements for comprehensive accessibility in the private sector. A particularly contentious point is the delayed deadline for federal buildings: authorities now have until 2045 to achieve full accessibility, pushed back from an earlier target of 2035. The government estimates the annual compliance cost for businesses at roughly €1.35 million.

Financial changes add to the pressure. Starting in 2027, co-payments under statutory health insurance will rise from the current €5–10 range to €7.50–15. Inpatient stays and prescriptions for therapeutic remedies will also become more expensive. On the positive side, a model allowing partial incapacity for work and partial sick pay is set to take effect after four weeks of illness, enabling a gradual return to the workplace. For the current year, tax allowances for disability remain in place: a 50-percentage-degree of disability (GdB) qualifies for €1,140, GdB 100 for €2,840, and those with the “H” (helplessness) or “Bl” (blindness) marker receive €7,400.

Recent court rulings have sharpened employer obligations. In late January 2026, the Cologne Regional Labour Court awarded €9,000 in compensation to a severely disabled lawyer whose prospective employer failed to submit a placement order to the Federal Employment Agency. The court ruled that a mention of the disability in the CV already triggered a presumption of discrimination. Meanwhile, the Federal Labour Court clarified that if a company does not obtain the mandatory consent of the Integration Office before terminating a severely disabled employee, a presumption of discrimination arises—but compensation is only possible if the disability was obvious to the employer. In a case involving a claimant with partial paralysis after a stroke, the judges did not automatically consider that obvious. The Cologne Labour Court also determined in November 2025 that the duty to initiate a prevention procedure under Book IX of the Social Code applies during the six-month waiting period, though a violation alone does not invalidate a dismissal as long as no connection to the disability exists.

A parallel digital initiative is underway. Between 2026 and 2029, a digital severely disabled person’s pass will be rolled out via the EUDI Wallet system, with the long-term goal of enabling a European disability card for travel within the EU. For daily work, severely disabled employees can continue to apply for workplace assistants—reading services or mobility aids financed by the Integration Office. In Saxony-Anhalt, nearly 20,000 severely disabled people were employed in 2024, with the largest share in the over-60 age group. The Hamburg Model remains a key tool for occupational reintegration, granting special protections during the two- to twelve-week phased return to work.

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