Does every person in a shared flat (WG) have to pay?
No. § 2 Abs. 1 RBStV attaches to the dwelling, not to the person: “In the private sphere, a broadcasting licence fee is to be paid for each dwelling by its holder.” A shared flat with four occupants therefore pays €18.36 once, not four times. In practice, one person registers and the others share the cost internally. Subsection 3 is important here: several contribution debtors are liable “as joint and several debtors in accordance with § 44 of the Fiscal Code” – the Landesrundfunkanstalt may pursue one person, and whoever pays must recover the balance from the co-occupants themselves. Settle this expressly, therefore, before anyone moves out.
From when must I pay — from the day I move in?
No, and this is the most common miscalculation. § 7 Abs. 1 RBStV provides that the obligation begins “with the first of the month” in which you first hold the dwelling. Anyone moving in on 28 March owes the contribution from 1 March – that is, the full month for three days of use. A pro-rated monthly contribution is unknown to the state treaty. The same logic applies at the other end, conversely: the month you move out is also charged in full. On a move within Germany, this does not create a double contribution, provided you properly deregister the old dwelling – but a great deal depends on exactly that, see the question on deregistration.
I do not have a television — do I still have to pay?
Yes. Since 2013 the Rundfunkbeitrag has been device-independent: it attaches to holding a dwelling, not to owning a receiving device. Whether you own a television, a radio, a smartphone or none of these is irrelevant to the obligation to pay, and so is the question of whether you actually use the programming on offer. That was the central change compared with the former Rundfunkgebühr, and it is the reason why the old idea of “deregistering the device” now leads nowhere. Anyone who genuinely cannot afford to pay has a different route: the exemption under § 4 RBStV when receiving certain social benefits or in a case of hardship.
How quickly must I register?
§ 8 Abs. 1 RBStV requires the notification “without delay, in writing”. This is deliberately not a fixed period, and above all it is not a one-month period, as many assume. In practice it means: without culpable delay, that is, as soon as you are reasonably able to do so. More important than the exact timing, though, is another point: the obligation to pay arises by operation of law, regardless of whether and when you register. Anyone who puts off registering therefore saves nothing – the contributions accumulate and are later assessed as a lump sum, plus a late-payment penalty. Registering is the cheaper route, not the more expensive one.
What exactly does the contribution cost, and when does it fall due?
€18.36 monthly per dwelling. It is owed monthly, but is paid under § 7 Abs. 3 RBStV “in the middle of a three-month period, for the three months in question” – which comes to €55.08 per quarter on the dates 15 February, 15 May, 15 August and 15 November. If you wish, you may instead pay half-yearly (€110.16) or yearly (€220.32) in advance; the annual total remains the same in every variant. If payment in full is not made within four weeks of the due date, a late-payment penalty of 1%, at least €8.00, becomes due under § 11 of the contribution by-law.
Do I get a reminder before every payment?
If you pay by bank transfer: not any longer. The Beitragsservice is switching over step by step and, instead of recurring payment requests, now sends only once a letter with your payment dates, which then apply “on an ongoing basis and therefore also for all following years” – “without your being reminded of this again”. There is no general start date: the official information is that when the letter reaches you “cannot yet be stated in general terms”. The risk is obvious – anyone who keeps waiting for the usual reminder falls into arrears through no fault of their own. Under SEPA direct debit, nothing changes, because there is nothing to remind you of there.
Who actually sends me the post — the Beitragsservice?
The Beitragsservice does the sending, someone else does the deciding. § 10 Abs. 7 RBStV describes it as a “non-incorporated public-law administrative association” – it has no legal personality of its own and performs tasks only on behalf of the broadcasters. Under § 10 Abs. 5 RBStV, outstanding contributions “are assessed by the competent Landesrundfunkanstalt”, that is, by WDR, BR, NDR, SWR, MDR and the others. This matters in practice if you want to defend yourself: an objection and legal action are directed against your Landesrundfunkanstalt, and the relevant contact address is given on the notice itself.
I have two dwellings — do I pay twice?
Without an application, yes; with an application, as a rule, no. Since the contribution is due per dwelling, a second contribution would arise for a second home. The Federal Constitutional Court declared this double burden unconstitutional on 18 July 2018; since then, § 4a RBStV has provided for an exemption for secondary residences – but expressly only on application, and only for people who themselves pay the contribution for the principal residence. Register both dwellings and submit the application at once: if it is submitted within three months, the exemption takes effect from the month in which the requirements were met; after that, only from the month of application.
