Moving out of a rented flat in Germany and getting your deposit back

Notice period. As a tenant you can end an open-ended tenancy with about three months' notice: your notice must reach the landlord by the third working day of a month, and the tenancy then ends on the last day of the month after next. For example, if it arrives by the third working day of March, the tenancy ends on 31 May. According to the Berliner Mieterverein, Saturdays do not count as working days here, so do not leave it to the last moment. A contract may not set a longer notice period for you; such a clause is void.

Form. Notice must be given in writing: a paper letter, signed by hand. Email, fax and messenger messages are not valid for residential tenancies. If several people signed the rental contract, all of them must sign the notice, and it must be addressed to all landlords. You do not need to give a reason.

Proof. You must be able to prove the date it arrived. The Berliner Mieterverein suggests having a neutral person (not a family member or co-tenant) deliver it and sign a copy confirming the date and time. A registered letter is another common option.

Fixed terms and waivers. If your contract is for a fixed term (Zeitmietvertrag) or contains a waiver of the right to give notice (Kündigungsverzicht), you usually cannot give ordinary notice during that period. A standard-form waiver of more than four years is generally invalid.

Leaving early. There is no general right to leave early by finding a replacement tenant (Nachmieter). Options are a clause in your contract allowing it, a mutual termination agreement (Aufhebungsvertrag), or, in cases of genuine hardship such as illness or a job move, a claim that the landlord accept a suitable replacement. Special termination rights also exist in some situations, for example after certain rent increases or announced modernisation.

Cosmetic repairs (Schönheitsreparaturen) means painting or wallpapering walls and ceilings, painting radiators, interior doors and the inside of windows, and similar. By law, the landlord must keep the flat in a usable condition (§ 535 BGB), and you are not responsible for wear from normal use (§ 538 BGB). Many contracts shift cosmetic repairs to the tenant, but courts have struck down many of these clauses.

A standard renovation clause is usually invalid if:

• you moved into an unrenovated flat and did not receive adequate compensation (Federal Court of Justice, BGH, 18 March 2015, VIII ZR 185/14). What counts is whether the flat gave the overall impression of being renovated;
• it sets rigid deadlines, such as "kitchen every three years" without any flexibility (BGH, 23 June 2004, VIII ZR 361/03);
• it requires you to pay a share of renovation costs when you leave early (Quotenabgeltungsklausel), which is always invalid (BGH, 18 March 2015, VIII ZR 242/13);
• it requires a full renovation when you move out regardless of the flat's condition (Endrenovierungsklausel);
• it dictates the colours you may use during the tenancy.

If the clause is invalid, you do not have to renovate. You must still pay for damage beyond normal wear. For example, the BGH has ruled that a tenant who returns a flat with strongly coloured walls that make it hard to re-let must pay for repainting (6 November 2013, VIII ZR 416/12). Normal wear from living in a flat is not damage.

If your clause is valid, you only owe the work the clause validly requires. Before you pay painters, have your contract checked.

The reverse situation also exists: if you moved into an unrenovated flat and the clause is invalid, you can ask the landlord to renovate during the tenancy once the decoration has deteriorated significantly, but you will usually have to pay half the cost (BGH, 8 July 2020, VIII ZR 163/18).

By the end of the tenancy, return the flat completely cleared and in the condition your contract validly requires, and hand over all keys, including copies you had made. Agree a handover appointment (Wohnungsübergabe) with the landlord a few weeks ahead.

Things you installed (for example a kitchen, flooring or wardrobes) generally have to be removed and the original condition restored if the landlord asks. The landlord can instead offer appropriate compensation to keep them.

The handover protocol (Übergabeprotokoll or Abnahmeprotokoll) records the condition of the flat. The Berliner Mieterverein recommends:

• bring a witness, ideally someone not involved in the tenancy;
• record the meter readings for electricity, water and heating, and photograph them;
• photograph every room, and note damage that was already there when you moved in;
• do not sign anything you disagree with, such as an acknowledgement that you owe repairs; write your objection in the protocol instead;
• take a copy of the signed protocol and a receipt for the keys.

If the landlord later claims you damaged the flat, these claims become time-barred six months after the landlord gets the flat back (§ 548 BGB).

The basics. A deposit may be at most three months' net rent (rent without service charges). The landlord must keep it separate from their own money, invested at the usual interest rate for savings with three months' notice, and the interest belongs to you. You get the deposit back with interest, minus any justified claims.

How long it can take. The law sets no fixed deadline. The landlord is allowed a reasonable time to check whether there are claims against you, and according to the Berliner Mieterverein courts usually allow up to six months. The landlord must state any counterclaims in euros and may only keep the amount needed to cover them.

Part held back for service charges. If you will probably owe a back-payment on the service-charge statement (Nebenkostenabrechnung or Betriebskostenabrechnung) for your final year, the landlord may keep an appropriate part of the deposit until that statement is done (BGH, 18 January 2006, VIII ZR 71/05), but not the whole deposit. The landlord has until 12 months after the end of the billing period to send the statement (§ 556 (3) BGB), so this remaining part can take more than a year to come back. After you receive the statement, you have 12 months to raise objections.

If nothing happens. If you have heard nothing about six weeks after moving out, the Berliner Mieterverein recommends asking in writing for a settlement, setting a specific deadline of about two weeks and keeping proof of sending. If that does not help, get advice. Your claim to the deposit is generally time-barred after three years, counted from the end of the year in which it became due.

If the building was sold. The new owner is liable for repaying your deposit, even if they never received it from the previous owner (§ 566a BGB).

• Moving within Germany: register at your new address within 14 days. You do not deregister the old one. See the registration guide for Berlin.
• Moving abroad: deregister (Abmeldung) between one week before and two weeks after you leave. See the deregistration guide.
• Electricity and gas: you may cancel with six weeks' notice to your moving date, unless the supplier offers to continue on the same terms at your new address. Give a final meter reading.
• Internet: if your provider can supply the new address, the contract moves with you on the same terms; if not, you may cancel with one month's notice.
• Broadcasting fee, insurers, bank, employer: tell them your new address. See the broadcasting fee guide.
• Give your landlord your new address and bank account in writing so the deposit and the final service-charge statement reach you.

1. Three to four months before: read your contract (fixed term, waiver, renovation clause). Send your signed notice and keep proof of delivery.
2. About six weeks before: give notice on electricity and gas if needed; arrange internet, post forwarding and movers.
3. Two to four weeks before: agree the handover date; fix any damage you are responsible for; get advice if the landlord demands renovation.
4. Moving day: handover with protocol, photos, meter readings and key receipt.
5. Within 14 days: register at your new address, or deregister if you have left Germany.
6. About six weeks after: if you have not heard about the deposit, ask in writing for a settlement.
7. When the final service-charge statement arrives (up to 12 months after the end of the billing period in which you moved out): check it and claim back any deposit still held.

In Berlin, the districts offer free tenant advice (Mieterberatung), and the Senate's Berliner Mietratgeber explains tenancy rules in German. Tenant associations (Mietervereine) advise members and can write to landlords on your behalf; membership is paid. Elsewhere in Germany, local tenant associations and consumer advice centres offer similar help. See the legal help guide for other options.