Why does the BonitätsAuskunft cost money if the data copy is free?
Because it is something different. The data copy (Datenkopie) is a right of access under Article 15(3) GDPR (DSGVO) – it shows you everything that is stored, and the first copy must be free of charge. The BonitätsAuskunft, by contrast, is a product for presenting to third parties: it deliberately contains only a summarised assessment without your individual data. The price of €29.95 therefore buys not more information but a presentable form – and less disclosure. Anyone who wants to check themselves what is stored does not need it and should not buy it; anyone who has to present it to a landlord needs exactly this and not the data copy.
Can my landlord demand a SCHUFA report?
A legitimate interest in the ability to pay of future tenants is generally recognised, and in practice a report is almost everywhere among the documents expected. But it does not follow from this that you have to present everything you have. The crucial point is the scope: what must be presented is the BonitätsAuskunft with its summarised assessment – not the data copy with your accounts, contracts, enquiries and score values. Anyone who hands over the full data copy voluntarily discloses data that nobody would be entitled to demand, and cannot take it back afterwards. Also ask whether proof of income and a certificate confirming no rent arrears are enough – they often are.
What is contained in the BonitätsAuskunft?
A summarised assessment of your ability to pay and a statement of whether any negative entries exist – but not a list of your contracts, accounts and enquiries. That is the deliberate difference from the data copy, and the reason it is suitable for passing on. For you this has a practical consequence worth knowing: it does not show you why the assessment turns out the way it does. So if you want to understand what is weighing on your creditworthiness, the BonitätsAuskunft is the wrong document – for that you need the free data copy, in which every single entry is listed with its date and the reporting company.
Should I request the free data copy beforehand?
Definitely, and this is the most important advice on this page. A BonitätsAuskunft reproduces what is stored – even when it is wrong. Anyone who buys and passes it on unchecked may end up presenting a landlord with an incorrect negative entry themselves, and never learns the reason for the rejection, because rejections do not have to be justified. The correct process is therefore: request the free data copy first, check every entry against the standard set by § 31 Abs. 2 BDSG, have anything incorrect corrected or deleted – and only after that order the BonitätsAuskunft. Allow several weeks for the correction and start accordingly early.
How long is the report valid?
There is no fixed statutory period of validity – the report is a snapshot and carries a date of issue. What follows from this in practice is determined by the recipient: landlords and management companies usually expect a document no older than a few months, without any rule existing for this. For you, this means two things. First: do not order it too early, but only once the flat search becomes concrete. Second: if the search drags on for months, a second report may become necessary – which then again costs €29.95. If in doubt, ask the recipient how current the document needs to be before you pay a second time.
Are there cheaper alternatives?
Sometimes yes, and it is worth asking before you pay. Many landlords accept proof of income for the last three months together with a certificate confirming no rent arrears from your previous landlord – neither costs you anything. Some banks and agents also offer their own creditworthiness certificates; their informative value and acceptance vary considerably, though, so you should clarify beforehand whether the recipient accepts them at all. What is not an alternative: passing on the free data copy. It is free, but it shows your contracts, accounts, enquiries and score values – far more than would be necessary or owed for assessing your ability to pay.
My application was rejected despite a good report — why?
Because the report is only one building block. A contract is not decided by SCHUFA but by the company – and it also applies its own criteria alongside this: income, employment relationship, previous business relationship, internal requirements. You should therefore know two things. First: direct your questions to the refusing company, not only to SCHUFA; that is where the decision was made. Second: if the refusal is decisively based on an automatically generated probability value, the rights under Article 22 GDPR (DSGVO) may apply – to obtain human intervention, to express your point of view and to contest the decision. The Court of Justice of the European Union clarified this on 7 December 2023 in case C-634/21.
Does ordering it also start a subscription?
The single BonitätsAuskunft is a one-off product and not a subscription. Alongside it, however, SCHUFA also offers ongoing products with monthly payment and, in some cases, a one-off activation fee, and the order paths lie close together – which is why it happens that someone takes out a subscription even though they only wanted a document. Before completing the order, read carefully whether it refers to a one-off payment or a monthly contribution. The prices and design of such products change without prior notice; rely therefore on the information in the order process itself, not on figures from guides – not even ours. If it has happened to you, our page on cancelling will help.
