Viral TikTok falsely ties German protest to Merz's nonexistent pay raise
A TikTok video claims that tens of thousands of people protested outside the Chancellery after Friedrich Merz's salary was secretly increased by €65,000. Our fact-check reveals: No such covert pay raise took place—though there was a draft bill, not yet passed into law, that initially proposed a salary increase of around €65,000 for Merz. The alleged protest, however, is entirely fabricated: the footage shown actually depicts a different demonstration with far fewer participants.
A reverse image search traces the video to multiple posts from mid-April, confirming it shows a protest against high fuel prices—not the mass demonstration described in the TikTok clip. Unlike the viral claim, these earlier reports mention hundreds of protesters, not tens of thousands.
The protest in question did occur: several media outlets covered a convoy of cars from Emden that arrived at the Bundestag and Chancellery on April 17. The event was officially registered, and Berlin police confirmed that up to 300 people took part. A spokesperson stated there was no record of any other large-scale protest matching the TikTok video's description.
The footage in the TikTok video appears to be from this demonstration, as the location and other details align. The Chancellery is visible in the background, along with a person standing on an elevated platform to the left.
The claim that the chancellor's salary was secretly raised by €65,000 is also false. As reported by multiple outlets, an initial draft bill from the Federal Interior Ministry under Alexander Dobrindt did include such a pay increase—but it had not been approved. Following criticism, the proposed raise was later reduced in the draft, leaving Merz with an annual increase of around €10,000. As of April 24, 2026, the bill has not yet been passed.
Currently, the chancellor receives a base salary of €26,807.26 per month, plus parliamentary compensation and additional allowances, bringing total earnings to roughly €40,000 monthly.
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