Benefits in kind and the combination benefit: mixing home care and care allowance
Editorial team caalyx.eu · Updated 20 October 2026
Benefits in kind (Pflegesachleistung) are the monthly budget German care insurance provides for a professional home care service: €796 at care grade 2, €1,497 at grade 3, €1,859 at grade 4 and €2,299 at grade 5 (§ 36 SGB XI). If you use only part of this budget, you also receive a proportional care allowance. This is the combination benefit (Kombinationsleistung): the allowance falls by exactly the percentage of benefits in kind you have used.
Benefits in kind per care grade
| Care grade | Benefits in kind per month | For comparison: care allowance |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | - | - |
| 2 | €796 | €347 |
| 3 | €1,497 | €599 |
| 4 | €1,859 | €800 |
| 5 | €2,299 | €990 |
Benefits in kind cover personal care (such as washing, dressing and help with eating), care-related support and help in the household. They are provided by home care services that hold a care contract (Versorgungsvertrag) with the care insurance funds. Medical treatment care, such as changing dressings, is different: a doctor prescribes it and it is paid by health insurance.
How billing works
- You choose an approved home care service and sign a care contract. Our checklist for choosing a home care service helps, and you can search our home care directory.
- The service gives you a cost estimate based on the service packages or time rates that apply in your federal state.
- Each month the service bills the care insurance fund (Pflegekasse) directly, up to the cap for your care grade.
- Anything above the cap is invoiced to you privately.
Our guide to home care service costs explains how these costs are made up.
The combination benefit
Many families share care with a professional service: the nurse comes in the morning to help with showering and relatives handle the rest. In that case § 38 SGB XI applies. The fund works out what percentage of benefits in kind has been used and pays the care allowance at the remaining percentage.
Formula: remaining allowance = care allowance × (100 % minus share of benefits in kind used)
Worked example at care grade 3
- Benefits-in-kind budget: €1,497
- The home care service bills €898.20, which is 60 %.
- 40 % of the care allowance remains: 40 % of €599 = €239.60.
More examples
| Care grade | Benefits in kind billed | Share used | Remaining allowance |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | €398.00 | 50 % | €173.50 |
| 3 | €898.20 | 60 % | €239.60 |
| 4 | €557.70 | 30 % | €560.00 |
| 5 | €2,299.00 | 100 % | €0.00 |
The split between cash and benefits in kind is binding for six months. During short-term or respite care, half of the proportional allowance paid beforehand continues for up to eight weeks a year. Try your own split with the care benefits calculator.
Conversion entitlement: 40 % for everyday support
If you do not need the whole benefits-in-kind budget for a home care service, you can use up to 40 % of it for everyday support services recognised under state law (Angebote zur Unterstützung im Alltag, § 45a(4) SGB XI). Examples include everyday companions, care groups or recognised household help.
| Care grade | Maximum convertible per month |
|---|---|
| 2 | €318.40 |
| 3 | €598.80 |
| 4 | €743.60 |
| 5 | €919.60 |
No prior application is required. You pay the service and send the receipts to your care insurance fund. Note that converted amounts count as benefits in kind used under the combination benefit, so they reduce your care allowance. A home care service is always billed first. See our guide to everyday support services.
What else you can use
- Relief amount: an extra €131 a month, for example for home care services outside personal care. See the relief amount.
- Day care: has its own budget and is not offset against the care allowance or benefits in kind.
- Advisory visit: if you receive benefits in kind, you can request a home advisory visit every six months.
Common mistakes
- Not checking the cost estimate: ask which service packages will be billed and what you will have to pay above the budget.
- Spending the allowance too early: the fund often only knows how much of the benefits in kind was used once the service has billed. The remaining allowance may therefore arrive later or be offset.
- Mixing up conversion and allowance: every euro converted reduces the care allowance proportionally.
Legal sources
- § 36 SGB XI: benefits in kind
- § 38 SGB XI: combining cash and benefits in kind
- § 45a SGB XI: everyday support services and conversion
This guide does not replace individual care or legal advice. The decision and information from your care insurance fund are binding.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between care allowance and benefits in kind?
The care allowance is paid out to the person in need of care when family members provide care. Benefits in kind are a budget the fund uses to pay an approved home care service directly.
How much care allowance is left with the combination benefit?
It falls by the percentage of benefits in kind you have used. If you use 60 % of the benefits in kind, you still receive 40 % of the care allowance.
What if the home care service costs more than the cap?
The service invoices you privately for the amount above the cap. For certain services you can use the relief amount of €131 a month towards this.
Do I need to apply in advance for the 40 % conversion?
No. No prior application is needed; you submit the receipts from the recognised service to your care insurance fund.