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Roads, salaries, EU bordersTraffic jams, free cancer checks, wage increases – these changes will come in April 2026
Traffic is backed up on Autobahn 1 in front of the Leverkusen interchange. After the last day of school before the Easter holidays, many families go on vacation.
picture alliance/dpa | Rolf Vennenbernd
Does he really do what he wants?
At least in terms of weather, April probably lives up to its reputation. What else it entails is decided elsewhere: on the (crowded) streets, in payroll and at the EU borders, for example. We have summarized the most important changes and innovations in the new month for you.
Traffic jam alert at Easter
The biggest rush on the motorways is likely to be from March 27th to 29th, when ten federal states start their Easter holidays. But it is also likely to be crowded on the holidays, especially on Maundy Thursday (2.4.) and Easter Monday (April 6th), when many people go home. Because the holidays end in Bremen, Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Lower Saxony and Saxony-Anhalt, the risk of traffic jams is still relatively high in the days afterwards, according to the ADAC.
At the end of the holidays in nine federal states from April 10th to 12th, according to the ADAC's expectations, “there should be no long, long traffic jams” as many people are heading home before the last holiday weekend.
Free lung cancer check
From April 1st, people who have smoked heavily for a long time can benefit from a free annual examination for lung cancer screening. The check is covered by the health insurance company and is carried out using low-dose computed tomography (CT). The offer is aimed at people aged 50 to 75 who Smoked for at least 25 years without a long break have. They must also have at least 15 pack-years, which are calculated as follows: number of cigarette packs smoked per day x number of smoking years.
Ex-smokers can also take advantage of the offer if they have not been abstinent for more than ten years. You can read more about this here.
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Nitrous oxide prohibited under 18
Allowed from April 12th Minors are no longer allowed to use nitrous oxide nationwide buy or own. Online trading of nitrous oxide and purchasing it from vending machines is generally prohibited. In addition, only 8.4 gram cartridges – the usual amount of cream dispenser cartridges – may be sold to adults, limited to a maximum of ten units per sales transaction. The consumption of laughing gas as a euphoric party drug is particularly widespread among young people, which is associated with high health risks: from hallucinations to unconsciousness to permanent damage to the nervous system.
Also for those as KO drops The well-known chemicals gamma-butyrolactone (GBL) and 1,4-butanediol (BDO) will be banned from April 12th, more specifically for the pure substance and preparations of these substances with a content of more than 20 percent each. The substances are often used to anesthetize victims of sexual or robbery crimes, particularly in the party scene. The new law is intended to provide better protection here.
Less money for psychotherapy
The National Association of Health Insurance Funds (GKV-Spitzenverband) has decided to reduce fees for psychotherapeutic services by 4.5 percent from April 1st. He justifies the decision by saying that fees for psychotherapists have risen sharply in recent years compared to other groups of doctors.
The decision triggered a wave of protest: professional associations, chambers of psychotherapists and associations of statutory health insurance physicians warn that the already tense supply situation with therapy places will become even worse as a result of the cuts. The National Association of Statutory Health Insurance Physicians (KBV) has filed a lawsuit against the decision. “This fatal decision is at the expense of mentally ill people and puts psychotherapists at a massive disadvantage. For absolutely no reason, an important component of outpatient care is being significantly weakened,” said KBV CEO Dr. Andreas Gassen.
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More money in public services
Around 925,000 employees in the state public sector will receive more money from April 1st. Wages rise by 2.8 percentbut at least around 100 euros. This applies in 15 of 16 federal states, as the state of Hesse negotiates separately. The next increase will take place on March 1, 2027. In a third step, another one percent will be added from January 1, 2028.
The junior staff's salary will increase by a total of 150 euros in three steps on the same dates. In addition, the allowance for shift work increases to 100 euros per month, and for nursing staff in hospitals to 100 euros. The rotating shift allowance increases to 200 euros per month, and in hospitals to 250 euros.
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No more passport stamps
On April 10th the gradual Introduction of the European entry and exit system EES (entry-exit system). The entry and exit of third-country nationals who are entitled to a short stay in the Schengen area will then only be registered digitally. The analogue stamp in the passport is finally no longer required. Among other things, the following are saved:
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alphanumeric data (e.g. last name, first name, date of birth, travel document data),
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biometric characteristics (four fingerprints, facial image),
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Time and place of entry or exit
The aim is to increase security at the borders, make identity fraud more difficult, and make unauthorized extensions of stay easier to detect. The EES will not change anything for EU citizens.
USB-C mandatory for laptops
Since the end of 2024, newly produced smartphones, tablets, headphones and other small electrical devices must have a USB-C port if a cable is used for charging. This standard, which is intended to ensure a uniform charging system in the long term, will apply from April 28th. also for laptops.
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New rules for contesting paternity
On April 1st, the law implementing the Federal Constitutional Court's ruling on contesting paternity comes into force. That's what it's about: According to the current legal situation, one could more physical Father the legal Do not challenge the paternity of another manif there is a socio-familial relationship between the child and his legal father. It was not taken into account whether there is or has been a social-familial connection between the child and the biological father.
According to the ruling of the Federal Constitutional Court, the biological father therefore had “no sufficiently effective procedure for obtaining legal paternity”. “The current law violates fathers’ fundamental rights in certain cases,” explained Federal Minister of Justice and Consumer Protection Dr. Stefanie Hubig.
According to the Bundestag, the new regulation is intended to avoid a “race for fatherhood” and to take the interests of everyone involved into account. For this purpose, a differentiated system of criteria should be used for weighing up, so that “a biological father has better opportunities to take responsibility for his child as a legal father,” explains Dr. Hubig.
Sources used: ADAC, KBV, dpa, verdi.de, Federal Ministry of the Interior, heise.de, Bundestag
