I have a few questions about jugendamt

Question

Me and my brother are having problems with our family and we have applied to the jugendamt, we hope they will move my brother and me to another place. But I have a few questions about this process.

-How will jugendamt officials visit us?
-If they come when we are at home, our family may cause trouble and not open the door, and they may harm us. We don't want this to happen. How can they help us in this situation?
-Do they need a signature from our family to pick us up?

-How does the process work after meeting with the jugendamt? How many days does it take and what decision do they make?

-I am over 18 years old, but my brother is under 18. How will jugendamt help us in this case? Will we be placed in separate places?

-Will the financial aid to us be transmitted through an intermediary or will it be delivered directly to us?

Answer 1

Hi @pelinqueen

Firstly, as you have been already in contact with the Jugendamt, it is best to continue to stay in contact with them. You should also direct these questions at them in order to make the process as less difficult as possible for your brother and you.

The Jugendamt can also assist young people over the age of 18. The maximum age is 21; in exceptional cases their assistance can be provided to people above that age.

I do not know how the Jugendamt officials will visit you. They may make an appointment or they may come unannounced. It depends on what you have told the Jugendamt and whether the officials think there is an urgent danger to the welfare of the child (in German ‘Kindeswohlgefährdung’). In this case they will come unannounced and take the child into custody.

If you feel in danger or are harmed, call the police. Do not stay in the home if you are unsafe there. You can go directly to the police.

The Jugendamt does not need the agreement of the parents in order to take a child into care.

I can only give general information about the process and the length of time. It varies depending on how acute the case is. If they feel the child’s welfare in endangered, they must act immediately.

In such a case, the child is taken into care and provided with accommodation at a home (Heim) or foster family (Pflegefamilie). If the Jugendamt felels it is appropriate, it may be possible for you to be housed together.

This explains how a child can be taken into care in Germany:

https://***-kita-de.translate.goog/wissen/inobhutnahme/?_x_tr_sl=auto&_x_tr_tl=en&_x_tr_hl=en&_x_tr_pto=wapp

After that the process can involve the following parties: the child, the parents, Jugendamt, the Vormundschaft, family court. The Vormundschaft is an adult appointed to represent the child during the proceedings. It is often done by a social worker. All parties will **** together to see if the issues with the parents can be resolved or if it is in the best interests of the child to continue to live elsewhere.

The Jugendamt must organise a translator if the parties involved do not speak enough German.

Here is a guide to the work of the Jugendamt in different languages:

https://***.unterstuetzung-die-ankommt.de/de/mediathek/broschueren/

The Kindergeld for the child must then be paid to the Jugendamt. Either the parents allow it to be paid directly to the Jugendamt or they will receive a bill.

You may be entitled to Kindergeld over the age of 18, depending on if you still in school, studying or doing an Ausbildung. You can apply to have it paid directly to you if you move out.

Additional financial support will be the responsibility of the Jugendamt for your brother. Depending on your residency status and whether you also get help from the Jugendamt, you may be entitled to help from the Jobcenter (Bürgergeld).

As I said, here I can only provide general information on the process. I strongly encourage you to keep in close contact with the Jugendamt and immediately contact or go to the police if you and/or your brother are in danger.

I also recommend you contact a local family support service (Familienberatungstelle). They can provide some additional independent advice and support to you throughout the process. They often have staff who speak languages other than German. Here you can search for one near you:

https://***-bke-de.translate.goog/bke/beratungsstellensuche?_x_tr_sl=de&_x_tr_tl=en&_x_tr_hl=en&_x_tr_pto=wapp

Best,

Éanna

Comments

First of all, thank you for your answers mbeon-Éanna
But today I came here with bad news.
I met with the jugendamt today and they took my little brother. but they said they couldn't take me. They couldn't help me because I was over 18. They left me alone and did not help me in any way. Now alone, separated from my brother, I have to find a way to survive. They said they couldn't help me because I am a German citizen, but they could help me if I was a refugee. I didn't know they treated their own citizens like this. I made a big mistake in trusting the German government. Now I will travel far and try to survive so that my father does not find me and kill me. I hope that if anyone else has the same problem as me, you can give an example of what I experienced and prevent yourself from making mistakes.

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I’m sorry to read that. As I wrote in my original answer, the Jugendamt can help people between the ages of 18 and 21, if the person needs assistance due to their personal situation. In very exceptional cases also over the age of 21. If you are between 18 and 21 I recommend that based on your current situation you ask the Jugendamt for this help, even if they told you in person this is not possible.

Here there is a good guide to this “Support for Young Adults” offered by the Jugendamt. You can read the example of the person Tim whose situation may be like yours to some extent.
It explains the help that is on offer and how to request it:

https://***-hilfen--zur--erziehung--online-de.translate.goog/leistungen-hilfsangebote/hilfen-fuer-junge-volljaehrige/?_x_tr_sl=de&_x_tr_tl=en&_x_tr_hl=en&_x_tr_pto=wapp

The fact that you are a German citizen is not relevant for receiving this help.

You mention your fear of being in danger from your father. As I mentioned before, if in danger you should call or go to the police. If you generally feel unsafe, there are safe shelters for men and women who are in danger. These called Frauenhaus for women and Männerhaus for men. Their locations are kept secret and they have social workers there who can help you with other matters.

Here you can search for women’s shelters:

https://***.frauenhaus-suche.de/en/

Here for men’s shelters:

https://***.maennergewaltschutz.de/en/advice-services/mensrefuges/

If you find somewhere else to live and register there, you can ask the registration authorities to block your address from being given to anyone else. This is called ‚Melderegisterauskunft sperren‘.
Here is an example of how it is done in Berlin:

https://service-berlin-de.translate.goog/dienstleistung/120678/?_x_tr_sl=de&_x_tr_tl=en&_x_tr_hl=en&_x_tr_pto=wapp

If you need assistance with these matters and are under the age of 27, you can **** for a youth migration service in your area (in German Jugendmigrationsdienst – JMD). Here you can search for one near you:

https://***-jugendmigrationsdienste-de.translate.goog/?_x_tr_sl=de&_x_tr_tl=en&_x_tr_hl=en&_x_tr_pto=wapp

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Thank you !!!
But i have bad news again... and i need help !
I found a place to stay for myself and my brother was staying in the dormitory. But today my brother called me and said, "My father went to Jungedamt and appealed, saying that he is now healed and wants his childs back." and jugendamt saying after 3 weeks they will give me back to my father, I said I don't want it but they don't listen. he said.
If my brother goes, I'll have to go too, and things will get much worse. We don't know what to do, please make a suggestion urgently.

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Hi @pelinqueen 

Whether a child is returned to their family depends on the evaluation of the Jugendamt (or in some cases the family law court). To me the time period of 3 weeks seems quite short. Taking a child into state care is the last resort for the Jugendamt if they think the child’s welfare is in danger. I do not understand how whatever circumstances caused them to believe the child to be in danger would have changed so much in such a short space of time, that the child would then be returned. 

Usually the Jugendamt makes a ‘help plan’ with different stages of things that have to be done before the child is returned. This is a process which takes some time. Ultimately, however, the question of who has care of the child is an issue between the Jugendamt and the child’s parents as they have legal custody (Sorgerecht). 

I can only give a very general assessment of the situation here based on what you have written. I strongly encourage you to make contact with a family advice service (Familienberatungstelle) in your area as they have much more expertise and experience in the area of family law than I have. 

I do not quite understand the issue around accommodation for you. As you are over 18, you can live where you wish. As I wrote before, if you need assistance in living independently, you can ask the Jugendamt for the help for young adults or the special JMD youth migration services.

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Thank you for the answer.
I'm here to tell you something that will surprise you a little more.
I said they would deliver my brother to my father in 3 weeks, but they delivered my brother to my father "yesterday", exactly 6 days later.
And no matter how much my brother said he didn't want to return in the jugendamt office, they didn't take him seriously. They also said to my brother, "We don't believe you, you are not afraid, you are lying to us." And now my brother lives with my father.

In order to get my brother from the jugendamt, my father promised them that he would take my brother and send him to me. I live in a relative's house now. And this relative of mine agrees to take care of both me and my brother. We told this to jugendamt, but they couldn't do it because my father didn't want it (custody issue).

But even though my father promised to send my brother to me, he refuses to send my brother to me today. He wants me to come there and get my brother. When I say, "Okay, drop my brother off at the train station and I'll come pick him up," he says, "No, you'll come to my house." He's trying to pull me into his trap.

The Jugendamt betrayed us badly.