The German at-risk-of-poverty rate proper (Armutsgefährdungsquote) was 15.5% in 2024 and 16.1% in 2025 — roughly one in six, not one in five.
'One in five' matches the wider EU indicator 'at risk of poverty or social exclusion' (AROPE), which also includes severe material and social deprivation and very low work intensity; the MEP dropped the 'or social exclusion' qualifier, conflating the two distinct statistics.
The second part of the original claim ('7 million pensioners receive less than €1,000 per month') was not verified in this check because the search budget was exhausted; it should be checked separately.
The most recent data available before the session date (2026-07-07) are the EU-SILC 2025 results published by Destatis in February 2026.
Sources
PrimaryStatistisches Bundesamt (Destatis) — Pressemitteilung PD26_039_63Press release titled '16,1 % der Bevölkerung in Deutschland sind armutsgefährdet'. In Germany in 2025, around 17.6 million people were at risk of poverty or social exclusion, i.e. 21.2% of the population; the at-risk-of-poverty rate was 16.1%.
PrimaryStatistisches Bundesamt (Destatis) — Pressemitteilung PD25_036_63Press release titled 'Im Jahr 2024 weiterhin ein Fünftel der Bevölkerung von Armut oder sozialer Ausgrenzung bedroht': in 2024, 15.5% of the population, around 13.1 million people in Germany, were at risk of poverty (armutsgefährdet); 17.6 million people (about one fifth) were at risk of poverty or social exclusion, and 6.0% were affected by severe material and social deprivation.
PrimaryEurostat — Eurostat news (People at risk of poverty or social exclusion in 2024)In 2024, 93.3 million people in the EU (21.0% of the population) were at risk of poverty or social exclusion; 72.1 million people in the EU (16.2%) were at risk of poverty after social transfers. Provides the EU-level context for the AROPE indicator used in the 'one in five' phrasing.