Rundfunkbeitrag im privaten Bereich

Interstate Broadcasting Treaty (RBStV)

In the private sector, the broadcasting fee is levied per dwelling and does not depend on the type and number of broadcasting devices. The rule applies: one dwelling - one contribution.
The broadcasting fee covers all

• broadcasting devices,
• smartphones and
• computers

within your apartment and in the private cars of all apartment residents. If a resident pays the broadcasting fee, this covers the obligation to pay the fee for all persons living in the apartment.
This regulation applies to

• Families
• Shared apartments
• Unmarried couples

Are you a student living in a student dormitory? Here it depends on the exact spatial conditions on site. You have to pay a broadcasting fee if you enter your room through a separate entrance directly

• from the staircase or
• an anteroom or
• from the outside.

You do not have to pay a contribution if you can only enter your room through another apartment.

Note: You must pay an additional broadcasting contribution for a second home.

People with disabilities and recipients of state benefits can receive relief.
Special regulations apply to companies, institutions and self-employed persons.

none

You must register with the contribution service,

• if you are of legal age (18 years or older) and
• if you or another person are not yet paying a broadcasting fee for your apartment.

There is no obligation to pay a contribution for a vacant apartment. The prerequisite is,

• that it is not occupied by anyone,
• that there is no rental agreement for it and
• that no person is registered at the residents' registration office.

For citizens:

• per apartment: EUR 17.50 per month
• each additional apartment: EUR 17.50 per month
• reduced broadcasting fee: EUR 5.83 per month

You must pay the broadcasting fee for three months at a time. The contribution service collects it in the middle of a three-month period.

The obligation to pay contributions begins on the first of the month in which you first occupy an apartment. This means that you

• live there,
• are registered there or
• are named as tenant in the rental agreement.

The broadcasting contribution replaced the broadcasting fee on January 1, 2013.

In the private sector, the broadcasting fee is levied per dwelling and does not depend on the type and number of broadcasting devices. The rule applies: one dwelling - one contribution.
The broadcasting fee covers all

• broadcasting devices,
• smartphones and
• computers

within your apartment and in the private cars of all apartment residents. If a resident pays the broadcasting fee, this covers the obligation to pay the fee for all persons living in the apartment.

Are you a student living in a student dormitory? Here it depends on the exact spatial conditions on site. You have to pay a broadcasting fee if you enter your room through a separate entrance directly

• from the staircase or
• an anteroom or
• from the outside.

You do not have to pay a contribution if you can only enter your room through another apartment.

People with disabilities and recipients of state benefits may receive relief.
Special regulations apply to companies, institutions and self-employed persons.