A Federal Minister for Special Affairs (german: Bundesminister für besondere Aufgaben, ) is a member of the

German government The Federal Cabinet or Federal Government (german: link=no, Bundeskabinett or ') is the chief executive body of the Federal Republic of Germany. It consists of the Federal Chancellor and cabinet minister A minister is a politician who head ...

without portfolio. Early Minister for Special Affairs were assigned different tasks by the Chancellor. For example,

Robert Tillmanns Robert Tillmanns (April 5, 1896 in Barmen – November 12, 1955 in Berlin) was a German politician. From 1953 to 1955 he was Federal Minister for Special Affairs of the Federal Republic of Germany. Life and work After the Abitur in 1914, T ...

, one of the first two Ministers for Special Affairs, represented the federal government in the

Council of Elders of the Bundestag The Council of Elders (german: Ältestenrat) of the German parliament Bundestag is a joint deliberative body which includes the following members: * President; * Vice presidents; * Bundestag members appointed by parliamentary groups in proportion ...

. Other responsibilities delegated to different Ministers for Special Affairs included the middle class, water management, the Federal Defense Council or the affairs of the Vice-Chancellor of Germany. Since 1964, this use of the title fell out of favour. Instead, the title is often given to the Chief of staff of the Chancellery to provide him with a vote in cabinet meetings. The last Chief of staff of the Chancellery not to concurrently hold the title of minister special affairs was Frank-Walter Steinmeier (1999–2005), who instead retained the lower Secretary of State rank; however regardless of ministerial rank, the title "Kanzleramtsminister" (Minister of the Chancellery) is frequently used to refer to the job. Historically, appointees to the ministry who weren't heads of the chancellery at the same time have often been important political aides or politicians waiting for a portfolio or representatives of certain parties, groups or regions. For instance, after German reunification in 1990, some members of the final East German government, former Association of Free Democrats (the affiliated group of the FDP, the then-junior coalition partner) Volkskammer leader

Rainer Ortleb Rainer Ortleb (born Gera 5 June 1944) is a German academic and politician. From October 1990 he served under Helmut Kohl as a Federal Minister for Special Affairs in Germany's first post-reunification government. In the next government, bet ...

and

President of the Volkskammer __NOTOC__ The Volkskammer (, ''People's Chamber'') was the unicameral legislature of the German Democratic Republic (colloquially known as East Germany). The Volkskammer was initially the lower house of a bicameral legislature. The upper house ...

Sabine Bergmann-Pohl Sabine Bergmann-Pohl (née Schulz; ; born 20 April 1946) is a German doctor and politician. A member of the Christian Democratic Union of Germany (CDU), she was president of the People's Chamber of East Germany from April to October 1990. Durin ...

were appointed as Federal Ministers for Special Affairs, in order to provide a representation of the New states of Germany in the federal government.

List of Federal Ministers for Special Affairs

Political Party: {{Foreign Ministers of Germany Special Affairs