Block 9

Parental allowance must be applied for, at the responsible parental allowance office: not the health insurer or the employment agency. The application is backdated by a maximum of three months, so applying early pays off.

Parents or legal guardians decide about kindergarten attendance. Unlike school, kindergarten is not compulsory; since 2013, however, there has been a legal entitlement to a childcare place from a child's first birthday.

Open-air assemblies must normally be notified to the assembly authority 48 hours in advance. This is a notification, not a permit: the right of assembly under Article 8 of the Basic Law applies regardless.

University study normally requires the Abitur, the general higher-education entrance qualification. The Fachhochschulreife allows study at universities of applied sciences, and special routes let people with vocational qualifications study without the Abitur.

Anne is 13 and therefore a child: sexual relations with her are a criminal offence, and living together as a couple is out of the question. For adult couples, age difference and same sex are irrelevant: same-sex marriage has been possible since 2017.

You come of age in Germany at 18. From then on you have full legal capacity, may vote, can enter into contracts, and bear full legal responsibility for your actions.

Maternity protection applies for six weeks before and normally eight weeks after the birth. During this period there is a ban on employment and special protection against dismissal. Parental leave is different: unpaid time off that either parent can take.

Article 6 of the Basic Law is explicit: the care and upbringing of children is the natural right of parents and the duty primarily incumbent on them. The state watches over this and intervenes only if a child's welfare is at risk.

Parents bear the main responsibility for upbringing (Article 6 of the Basic Law). Schools and the youth welfare office support and supplement them; the state intervenes only when parents fail in their duties and a child's welfare is at risk.

Good education (school, vocational training, university) is the most important factor in Germany for getting a well-paid job. The dual training system (vocational school + employer) is internationally recognised. Education in Germany is largely free of charge.

Since 2000, children in Germany have had a statutory right to a non-violent upbringing (§ 1631 of the Civil Code). Corporal punishment is prohibited and can be prosecuted as bodily harm: including within the family.

Germany practises monogamy: you may be married to only one person at a time. A second marriage is possible only after divorce or the death of a spouse, and is then expressly permitted. Bigamy is a criminal offence.

After moving you must register with the residents' registration office of your new municipality, normally within two weeks. The registry office handles marriages, births, and deaths, and the trade office handles businesses.

The year of separation means the spouses must live apart for at least a year before a divorce can be granted. The point is to test whether the marriage has really broken down. Living separately is possible even within one home.

The youth welfare office helps with parenting problems: through counselling, family support, and referral to therapy. This help is voluntary and free of charge: the office is first and foremost a source of support, not a supervisor.

Anyone serving food and alcoholic drinks needs a restaurant licence from the competent authority, usually the public order or trade office. A business registration and a health-office briefing are also required.

Adults obtain the Abitur through the "second educational path", typically at an evening grammar school or a Kolleg. Classes take place in the evening so you can work alongside. Universities, by contrast, already require the Abitur.

As a last resort, the youth welfare office may remove a child from the family if their welfare is acutely at risk: for example through violence or neglect. Choice of school is the parents' decision, and child benefit is paid by the family benefits office.

The careers information centre (BIZ) of the Federal Employment Agency provides free information on occupations, training routes, and vacant apprenticeships. Pensions, taxes, and health insurance fall to other bodies.

Compulsory schooling brings compulsory attendance: children must take part in lessons regularly. Unexcused absence can result in a fine for the parents. There are no school fees at state schools.

The second educational path is open at 30 too: the Abitur can be completed at an evening grammar school or Kolleg. There is no upper age limit: lifelong learning is expressly built into the German education system.

Equal treatment means nobody may be disadvantaged because of origin, gender, religion, disability, age, or sexual identity. The basis is Article 3 of the Basic Law and the General Equal Treatment Act (AGG), and breaches can be taken to court.

From the age of 14 you bear criminal responsibility and are punished for offences, but under juvenile criminal law, which emphasises education rather than retribution. Under 14 there is no criminal responsibility, and punishment never falls on the parents.

On Rose Monday, the climax of carnival, costumed crowds parade through the streets: above all in Cologne, Düsseldorf, and Mainz. Depending on the region the festival is called Karneval, Fastnacht, or Fasching.

To get married you register the marriage at the registry office. Only the civil ceremony is legally valid; a religious ceremony may take place in addition but does not replace it.

The statutory night-time quiet period runs from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. During these hours noise must be kept to room volume: covering music, parties, washing machines, and DIY work.

At 18 the daughter is of age and decides for herself where and with whom she lives. Her parents no longer have any right to bring her back; the right to free development of one's personality applies within one's own family too.

The theory part of the driving test can be taken in several foreign languages, including English, Turkish, Russian, Arabic, and French. The practical test, however, is conducted in German, and no interpreter is permitted.

Since 1996 children have had a legal entitlement to a kindergarten place from age three until they start school; since 2013 this applies from a child's first birthday. The municipality must provide a place.

The Volkshochschule (VHS) is the municipal institution for adult education. It offers affordable courses for all age groups: languages, integration courses, IT, vocational training, and cultural programmes.