You are entitled to unemployment benefit if you fulfil all of the following requirements: You must be unemployed, you must have completed the qualifying period and you must have registered as unemployed in person.

Unemployed persons who want to become self-employed might receive a start-up grant (Gründungszuschuss) to promote the taking up of self-employment.

Short-time allowance due to the economic situation (Kurzarbeitergeld - Kug) is granted if regular weekly working hours of an enterprise are shortened temporarily due to economic reasons or an inevitable event. The prerequisites of Sections 95 to 109 of Book Three of the German Social Code (SGB III) must be fulfilled.