Fertility Effects of Child Benefits

69 Pages Posted: 29 Mar 2017

See all articles by Regina T. Riphahn

Regina T. Riphahn

University of Erlangen-Nuremberg-Friedrich Alexander Universität Erlangen Nürnberg - Department of Economics; IZA Institute of Labor Economics; CESifo (Center for Economic Studies and Ifo Institute)

Frederik Wiynck

University of Erlangen-Nuremberg-Friedrich Alexander Universität Erlangen Nürnberg

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Date Written: February 15, 2017

Abstract

We exploit the 1996 reform of the German child benefit program to identify the causal effect of heterogeneous child benefits on fertility. While generally the reform increased child benefits, the exact amount of the increase varied by household income and the number of children. We use these heterogeneities to identify their causal effects on fertility in a difference-in-differences setting. We apply the large samples of the German Mikrozensus and the rich data of the German Socio-economic Panel (SOEP). The reform effects on low income couples are not statistically significant. We find some support for positive fertility effects for higher as opposed to lower income couples deciding on a second birth.

Keywords: Child Benefits, Fertility, Tax Allowance, Causal Effect, Difference-In-Differences, Mikrozensus, SOEP

JEL Classification: J13, I38, C54

Suggested Citation

Riphahn, Regina T. and Wiynck, Frederik, Fertility Effects of Child Benefits (February 15, 2017). SOEPpaper No. 896, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2941614 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2941614

Regina T. Riphahn (Contact Author)

University of Erlangen-Nuremberg-Friedrich Alexander Universität Erlangen Nürnberg - Department of Economics ( email )

Lange Gasse 20
Nuernberg, D-90403
Germany

IZA Institute of Labor Economics

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CESifo (Center for Economic Studies and Ifo Institute)

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Munich, DE-81679
Germany

Frederik Wiynck

University of Erlangen-Nuremberg-Friedrich Alexander Universität Erlangen Nürnberg ( email )

Schloßplatz 4
Erlangen, DE Bavaria 91054
Germany

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