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Widerspruch gegen einen Jobcenter-Bescheid

Bürgergeld / ALG II Widerspruch — object to a Jobcenter decision

The Jobcenter cut your payment, rejected your application, or demands money back — and you think the decision is wrong. A Widerspruch is the formal, free way to contest it, and it must reach the Jobcenter within ONE MONTH of the decision arriving. Send this letter immediately to stop the clock; the detailed reasons can follow later.

The German template

Replace everything in [square brackets] with your details.

[Vorname Nachname]
[Straße Hausnummer]
[PLZ Ort]

Jobcenter [Stadt]
[Adresse des Jobcenters]

[Ort], den [Datum]

Widerspruch gegen Ihren Bescheid vom [Datum des Bescheids]
Bedarfsgemeinschaftsnummer: [BG-Nummer]

Sehr geehrte Damen und Herren,

hiermit lege ich fristgerecht Widerspruch gegen Ihren oben genannten Bescheid ein.

Die ausführliche Begründung reiche ich in Kürze nach. Ich beantrage zudem Akteneinsicht.

Bitte bestätigen Sie den Eingang meines Widerspruchs schriftlich.

Mit freundlichen Grüßen

[Unterschrift]
[Vorname Nachname]

What it says in English

[Your name]
[Street + number]
[Postcode City]

Jobcenter [City]
[Jobcenter address]

[City], [date]

Objection to your decision of [date of the decision]
Household number (BG-Nummer): [BG number]

Dear Sir or Madam,

I hereby lodge a formal objection (Widerspruch) against your decision referenced above, within the deadline.

I will submit the detailed reasons shortly. I also request access to my file (Akteneinsicht).

Please confirm receipt of my objection in writing.

Kind regards

[Signature]
[Your name]

Before you send it

  • The deadline is ONE MONTH from the day the Bescheid reached you (§ 84 SGG). If the letter carries no proper legal-remedy instruction (Rechtsbehelfsbelehrung), the window is longer — but never rely on that; send the objection now and argue later.
  • The Widerspruch itself is free. The Jobcenter must review its own decision, and a large share of Jobcenter objections succeed at least partly — a wrong Bescheid is common, not exceptional.
  • Quote the BG-Nummer (Bedarfsgemeinschaftsnummer) from the top of the Bescheid — without it the objection may sit unmatched to your file.
  • Send it in a way you can prove: Einwurf-Einschreiben, or hand it in at the Jobcenter and have the copy stamped as received.
  • A Widerspruch alone does not always pause the effect of the decision. If money is being cut off NOW, ask a Beratungsstelle about an urgent application (einstweiliger Rechtsschutz) at the Sozialgericht.
  • Free help exists: Sozialverbände (VdK, SoVD), Erwerbslosenberatungsstellen, and — for the court stage — Beratungshilfe from the Amtsgericht. For real stakes, use them.

Last verified 2026-07-02. Practical guidance, not legal advice — for disputes with real stakes, a Mieterverein, union or lawyer is worth it.

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