Contents
The limit follows the minimum wage
Since October 2022 the marginal earnings threshold has been dynamic: it equals 130 times the minimum wage, divided by three and rounded up to whole euros (section 8(1a) SGB IV). At a minimum wage of 13.90 euros that gives 603 euros.
Behind it lies the idea of a fixed working week of ten hours. On paper, 603 euros at the minimum wage is around 43.4 hours a month. Anyone paying more than the minimum wage can deploy correspondingly fewer hours.
The annual view and occasional exceeding
What counts is not the individual month but the forward-looking annual view: 12 × 603 euros = 7,236 euros. Occasional and unforeseeable exceeding is harmless; it is permitted in up to two calendar months within a twelve-month period, in each case up to twice the limit.
Anyone regularly above it as a matter of course, by contrast, is no longer marginally employed. The consequences take effect retroactively, with contributions for up to four years.
In employment law terms a mini-job is an ordinary employment relationship
Leave entitlement under the Federal Leave Act, continued pay in case of illness and on public holidays, notice periods, maternity protection and the entitlement to an employment contract in text form apply unchanged. Disadvantageous treatment compared with full-time staff is impermissible under section 4 TzBfG.
The record-keeping duty under section 17(1) MiLoG applies to all marginally employed people, regardless of the industry: the start, the end and the duration within seven calendar days, to be kept for two years.
Example: the hours limit at different hourly rates
- At the minimum wage of 13.90 euros: 603 ÷ 13.90 = 43.4 hours a month.
- At 16.00 euros: 603 ÷ 16.00 = 37.7 hours.
- At 20.00 euros: 603 ÷ 20.00 = 30.2 hours.
- Anyone paying more has to deploy fewer hours, otherwise the limit is breached.
Common mistake
Cover during illness does not get counted. Two extra shifts a month are enough at the minimum wage to go over 603 euros, and the correction runs retroactively.
This is not legal advice; for a specific case at your workplace you are better off asking someone qualified to give it.
Published by: AMNAU GmbH
Editorial responsibility: Ugur Aydogan, Product development.
Last reviewed: 2 September 2026