Darlehen: Arbeitsagentur braucht mehr Geld vom Bund

Berlin - The Federal Employment Agency (BA) anticipates requiring more loans from the federal government in 2027 due to persistently high unemployment rates. "We currently estimate that the previously planned loan amount of 5.2 billion euros will be higher," said a BA spokesperson on Monday to Reuters. The exact extent of the additional financial need remains uncertain.

The agency is currently revising its 2027 budget based on the federal government's autumn projections. The spokesperson cited high unemployment as the reason for the anticipated additional requirement. According to the government's baseline figures, the average unemployment rate in 2027 is expected to remain nearly unchanged at around 2.997 million.

The economic recovery has not yet translated into labor market improvements, the spokesperson explained. Even if the economic upturn persists, it may take some time before the effects are visible in the labor market. The 5.2 billion euros were estimated in June based on the BA's financial plan at that time and are included in the government's draft 2027 federal budget.

The federal loan is a type of financial transaction that does not count toward the debt ceiling and thus does not create a new hole in the budget. Whether the loan approach will be increased is still unclear. The Bundestag's Budget Committee plans to finalize the final adjustments to the draft 2027 federal budget during its reconciliation meeting starting Thursday.

Only last week, it was disclosed that the federal government had already had to provide the BA with loans amounting to up to nine billion euros this year, which is about 600 million euros more than initially anticipated.