Abuse of performance
Of benefit fraud is when someone in Germany benefits therefore receives because he did not give all the facts that are relevant to the performance, and / or changes in the conditions of life that are relevant to the payment of benefits, notifies without delay. This also applies to applying for such services.
Benefit fraud exists, for example, if a recipient of unemployment benefits the employment agency against § 60 of the ( First Social Code Book Apart (SGB I) taking up employment does not display. The income generated will be deducted from the entitlement to benefits, the performance is accounted for in whole or in part, .
Failure to notify this causes an administrative offense to be committed which can be punished with a fine of up to 5000 euros .
If this is done with intent , the recipient of the service will be reported for fraud .
Combating abuse of performance
Instruments of the authorities
When it comes to combating abuse of services, authorities with (suspected) employers have the right to inspect the business documents and to provide the companies or their tax advisors with appropriate information in accordance with Section 319 of Book III of the Social Code. Section 93 (8 ) of the Tax Code (AO) enables authorities such as B. job centers or the employment agencies to carry out account inquiries if a request for information from the person concerned is unsuccessful or does not promise success. In the area of undeclared work of beneficiaries, there is cooperation with the responsible customs authorities .
The providers of basic security for job seekers carry out a quarterly automatic data comparison between the service providers and the file of the pension insurance institutions to compare the receipt of other social benefits that may be offset against the basic security benefit. Furthermore, if there is concrete suspicion, the social service provider can obtain individual information from other service providers about the receipt of certain benefits.
Another instrument for combating abuse of services is the deployment of employees in a field or investigative service who checks the information provided by those affected on site (e.g. in the residential area). Without the consent of the landlord, they have no right to enter the apartment. However, a refusal of admission by the person concerned can definitely be assessed negatively in the judicial clarification of allegations of abuse, for example in the case of a lawsuit against a temporary suspension of services. If there is a specific and sufficient suspicion of criminal acts (see also below), the police can also be called in and a judicial search warrant applied for.
Fines and penalties
Violations of the duty to cooperate (e.g. payment of benefits as a result of deliberately wrong or incomplete information, Section 56 ff. SGB II) are punished by criminal charges for performance fraud in accordance with Section 263 of the Criminal Code and fines ( Section 63 of SGB II). In addition, the wrongly paid benefits according to § § 45 , § 50 SGB X must be repaid. If falsified or falsified documents are presented, punishment as falsification of documents according to Section 267 of the Criminal Code can also be considered.
Web links
- Informing the financial control of illegal employment
- Frank Oschmiansky: Lazy unemployed? On the debate about unwillingness to work and abuse of performance. In: From politics and contemporary history (B 06-07 / 2003), supplement to the weekly newspaper Das Parlament , publisher: Federal Center for Political Education
See also
Individual evidence
- ↑ Legal basis: Basic security data comparison regulation
- ↑ Legal bases and restrictions are regulated in §§ 67ff SGB X.
- ↑ Unemployed, Hartz IV - What now? ( Memento of January 6, 2007 in the Internet Archive ), MDR of October 2, 2006
