Germany will provide $1.4 billion to Holocaust survivors globally in 2024

Key Findings:

The Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany (Claims Conference) has concluded negotiations with the German Federal Ministry of Finance, resulting in approximately $1.4 billion in direct compensation and social welfare services for Holocaust survivors worldwide. This landmark agreement impacts over 128,000 survivors globally.

The negotiated compensation includes $888.9 million designated for home care and supportive services for frail and vulnerable survivors. Additionally, symbolic payments from the Hardship Fund Supplemental program have been increased by $175 million. Originally intended as a one-time payment during the COVID-19 pandemic, the program has been extended until 2027 to continue supporting eligible survivors.

The recipients of these payments are primarily Russian Jews who were not confined to camps or ghettos during the Holocaust and thus not eligible for pension programs. Many of these survivors fled from the Einsatzgruppen, the notorious Nazi mobile killing units responsible for mass killings of Jewish communities.

Greg Schneider, the Executive Vice President of the Claims Conference, underscores the increasing urgency of these negotiations as the last generation of survivors ages and their needs grow. Ensuring direct payments and expanding social welfare services is essential to address the individual needs of every survivor and provide care for as long as required. The continuation of these negotiations remains vital in upholding the legacy and memory of Holocaust survivors.

Stuart Eizenstat, JPPI’s Co-Chair and the lead reparations negotiator since 2009: “I am inspired that the German government and its people continue to feel a deep responsibility to provide additional care to Holocaust survivors.”