Bundesamt für Seeschifffahrt und Hydrographie
Sachgebiet S 13 - Flaggenrecht und Schifffahrtsförderung
Bernhard-Nocht-Straße 78
20359 Hamburg

Bereich Schifffahrtsförderung

Angela Knoll
Phone: +49 40 3190-7130
Fax: +49 40 3190-5003


Webcode for this Content: 16538389

Non-wage labour costs

Subsidies to reduce ancillary labour costs

As part of its financial support measures the federal government of Germany grants subsidies to reduce non-wage labour costs to maritime shipping companies. These subsidies cover the costs for the employers’ contributions to the social security in Germany for their seafarers on German-flagged ships. In addition, starting from the subsidisation year 2017, seafarers on flagged-out ships can be included into this subsidisation scheme under specific conditions. One condition is that contributions to social security are paid as part of the insurance by power of an area of the law (Ausstrahlungsversicherung).

Interpretation aid
The aim of this subsidy program is to pay the funds to the one that actually bears the costs of the employers' contributions of the statutory social security for the seafarers on the ship. This person is the applicant. Depending on the business model, this can also be the contract shipping company if it bears the costs of the social security.

The ships included in these regulations are merchant ships transporting goods or passengers commercially on international voyages or which are chartered for commercial purposes. They also include cable layers, dredgers and tugs, if more than 50% of their actual activities are performed in international maritime traffic.

Subsidies for tourism vessels, cutter fishing passenger ships and vessels for burials at sea are ruled out. The eligibility for subsidisation - especially in comparison to the requirements regarding build and qualification of the crew that have to be posed for merchant ships in international maritime traffic - is not satisfied.

It is required that the ship is registered in a German shipping register for sea-going ships and is flying a flag that is eligible for funding. The German flag is eligible, and as of funding year 2017 so are the EU member states, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland. Ships which are allowed to fly the German flag based on a flag document, in accordance with section 11 Paragraph 1 of the Flaggenrechtsgesetz (flag act), are also eligible to make the application.

For ships which are flagged into an eligible flag during the appropriation period these terms become valid from the day the new flag is flown. If the ship loses the right to fly an eligible flag throughout the appropriation period, subsidies are only possible when the eligible flag is flown for at least three months of the appropriation period.

Each ship receives individual subsidies based on the seafarers included. Seafarers in terms of the regulation are Germans and citizens of the EU as well as Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland. From the funding year 2017, the individual subsidisation amount is the sum of the mandatory employers' contributions to the statutory social security in the Federal Republic of Germany. This comprises promotion of employment, health care, social care, accident and pension insurance including the seafarers' special fund.

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Application and forms

Interpretation aid
The aim of this subsidy program is to pay the funds to the one that actually bears the costs of the employers' contributions of the statutory social security for the seafarers on the ship. This person is the applicant. Depending on the business model, this can also be the contract shipping company if it bears the costs of the social security.

Please submit your applications for subsidies to the Federal Maritime and Hydrographic Agency (Bundesamt für Seeschifffahrt und Hydrographie - BSH), latest by 31 December of the year preceding the subsidies. If applications are received on 1 January or later, the subsidies are reduced proportionally. Applications received after 30 September (deadline) can not be accepted. Only the maritime part of the dredger and tug operations are subsidised.

Please note that an eligibility of subsidisation for martime tourism vessels, cutter fishing passenger ships and vessels for burials at sea is no longer satisfied from the subsidisation year 2018.

Please use the following forms:

The application form for subsidies for ancillary labour costs, 2019, can be filled out electronically and any data which has been entered can also be stored, so that it can be reused if this application form is to be reloaded. Important advice on filling out this application form is found in the attached yellow fields. Please also read the instructions for further information and assistance.

In order to meet the deadline applications must be submitted in writing and complete (with all annexes and enclosures) to the:
Bundesamt für Seeschifffahrt und Hydrographie
Bernhard-Nocht-Str. 78
D 20359 Hamburg

For further information on the current support program please refer to:

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Accounting

Recipients of subsidies for ancillary labour costs are accountable. As a principle, account must be given within six months after the period of payment, at the latest by 30 June of the following year, and submitted in writing and complete (with all annexes and enclosures) to the:

Bundesamt für Seeschifffahrt und Hydrographie
Bernhard-Nocht-Straße 78
20359 Hamburg, Germany

Please use the following forms:

Account for non-wage labour costs, 2017

Please send the forms "Anlage Beschäftigte" and "Anlage Kabelleger / Nassbagger / Schlepper" additionally as electronic copy to the e-mail address LNK-VN@bsh.de. The annexes are compatible with Microsoft Office versions from 2007. Older Office versions cannot open them or only with compatibility loss or restricted functionality.

Additional information on "Anlage Beschäftigte"

The form "Anlage Beschäftigte" (2017 and after) contains advanced functionalities to assist you in filling in data required from the subsidisation year 2017 onwards and support you in the best way possible with the preparation of the "Verwendungsnachweise" (accounts). Please use the contained operational buttons and take note of the contained comments.

For a better understanding, we offer you a short instruction as well as a video tutorial where the operation of the form is shown.

Please direct any problems with the operation to your contact persons at the department "Promotion of Shipping". Do not modify the file format or any contents of the excel file, since this will lead to reading errors and the forms might have to be filled in again and resent.

Account for non-wage labour costs, 2016

In addition, please email the forms "Annex employees" and "Annex cable-laying ship / dredger / tugs" without any modification in electronic format (no PDF-files) to .

Please note:
The annexes are available as xlsx files in the so called Open XML file format and are compatible with Microsoft Office versions from 2007. Older Office versions can not open the files or only with a loss of compatibility and limited functionality.

Further information can be found in the notification of appropriation of funds and in the following guidelines:

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