Housing and registration in Berlin
Anyone who moves into a flat in Berlin must register at the Bürgeramt (citizens' office) within two weeks (14 days) of moving in (§ 17 Abs. 1 Bundesmeldegesetz, BMG, Federal Registration Act). This applies regardless of nationality or residence title. For the registration you need a landlord's confirmation (Wohnungsgeberbestätigung) from your landlord (§ 19 BMG) – without this document the Bürgeramt will not accept the registration.
Registration itself is free of charge. Missing the deadline is an administrative offence under § 54 BMG that can be punished with a fine.
For the actual flat hunting, Berlin has no central official placement office for the free market – the market is mostly privately organized. However, the Willkommenszentrum Berlin (Welcome Centre Berlin) and several district advice centres offer orientation, and in some cases support with the search. Important basic rules of tenancy law – rent index, rent cap, deposit, notice periods – are regulated by federal law, with a Berlin-specific feature in the rent index.
- Obtain the landlord's confirmationAsk your landlord for a written confirmation. According to § 19 Abs. 3 BMG, it must contain the name and address of the landlord (and the owner's name if different), the date of moving in, the address of the flat and the names of all persons required to register.
- Book an appointment at the BürgeramtBook an appointment centrally via service.berlin.de (appointment booking) at any Berlin Bürgeramt. Online registration (eWA, electronic residence registration) is also possible, but requires an eID-enabled German chip card with activated online ID function and a BundID account – for newly arrived labour migrants without a German ID document, the in-person appointment is usually the normal route in practice.
- Register within 14 daysBring a valid ID document (passport or identity card), the landlord's confirmation and the completed registration form to the appointment. Registration is free of charge.
- Keep the registration certificateYou need the registration confirmation for, among other things, opening a bank account, assigning your tax ID, child benefit applications and many other dealings with authorities.
- Re-register when moving again within BerlinThe two-week deadline under § 17 Abs. 1 BMG applies again when moving within Berlin – re-register at your new competent Bürgeramt.
- A breach of the registration obligation (no, incorrect or late registration/deregistration) is an administrative offence under § 54 Abs. 2 BMG with a fine of up to 1,000 euros; giving a false address is punishable under § 54 Abs. 1 BMG with up to 50,000 euros. No reliable official source is available here on the actual fining practice of Berlin's Bürgerämter (usual amount in individual cases) – no confirmed information is available on this.
- Electronic residence registration (eWA) via service.berlin.de with BundID requires an eID-enabled German chip card (identity card or electronic residence title with activated online ID function). For most newly arrived labour migrants without such a document, the in-person appointment at the Bürgeramt remains the practically relevant route.
- Berlin has no central official placement office for market-rate flats. The district housing offices (Wohnungsämter) are mainly responsible for the housing entitlement certificate (Wohnberechtigungsschein, WBS) for publicly subsidized housing, for housing benefit (Wohngeld) and similar benefits, not for placing free-market flats. Specific success rates, waiting times or a complete, current list of all Berlin advice centres on flat hunting for immigrants could not be found – no confirmed information is available on this.
- The available sources contradict each other on the exact address and phone number of the Willkommenszentrum Berlin (see the contradiction already documented on the topic page "Recognition of foreign qualifications in Berlin"); therefore primarily use its website or e-mail address rather than a phone number or postal address.
- In Berlin, the rent cap applies to the entire city area as an area with a tight housing market (§ 556d BGB) via the Mietenbegrenzungsverordnung (Rent Limitation Ordinance) that entered into force on 1.1.2026 and is limited until 31.12.2029. However, it does not apply without exception: under § 556f BGB, flats used and let for the first time after 1 October 2014, as well as the first letting after comprehensive modernization, are exempt from the rent cap. Whether a specific flat falls under one of these exceptions can only be checked case by case.
In depth · Legal basis, figures and practice – for counsellors and professionals
Federal law: registration obligation under the Bundesmeldegesetz
The obligation to register is regulated nationwide in the Bundesmeldegesetz (BMG, Federal Registration Act) and applies regardless of nationality or residence status. Under § 17 Abs. 1 BMG, anyone who moves into a flat must register with the registration authority within two weeks of moving in; the same deadline applies to deregistration under § 17 Abs. 2 BMG. Exceptions to the registration obligation exist, among others, for persons already registered elsewhere in Germany who stay no more than six months in the new flat, and for persons moving from abroad who stay no more than three months in Germany (§ 27 BMG). For most newly arrived labour migrants who live in Berlin permanently, however, the regular two-week deadline applies.
Landlord's confirmation (§ 19 BMG)
Since the BMG reform of 2015, the landlord has been legally obliged to confirm the move-in in writing. Under § 19 Abs. 3 BMG, the confirmation must contain: name and address of the landlord (and the owner's name if different), the date of moving in, the address of the flat, and the names of all persons required to register under § 17 Abs. 1 BMG. The confirmation must be provided within the same deadline as the registration. Without this document, registration at the Bürgeramt cannot be completed.
Costs and sanctions
Registration itself is free of charge. A breach of the registration obligation is an administrative offence: under § 54 Abs. 2 BMG, failure to register or deregister, incorrect or late registration or deregistration can be punished with a fine of up to 1,000 euros; giving an incorrect address is punishable under § 54 Abs. 1 BMG with up to 50,000 euros. No reliable official source is available on the amount of fines actually imposed in Berlin in typical cases.
Implementation in Berlin: Bürgeramt appointment
The Bürgerämter (citizens' offices) of Berlin's twelve districts are responsible; appointments are allocated centrally via the service portal service.berlin.de. Besides the in-person appointment, there is the option of electronic residence registration (eWA), which, however, requires a BundID account and an eID-enabled German chip card (identity card or electronic residence title with activated online ID function) – for most newly arrived labour migrants without such a document, the in-person appointment remains the practically relevant route. Berlin also runs a separate Flüchtlingsbürgeramt (citizens' office for refugees) at Rathaus Tiergarten for the registration of asylum seekers and Ukrainian war refugees – for labour migrants, by contrast, any regular Bürgeramt is responsible.
Flat hunting: no central official procedure
Unlike social housing, there is no central official placement office for privately financed market-rate flats. State-owned housing companies publish their offers via, among others, the portal inberlinwohnen.de, which also includes subsidized and low-barrier housing. The Willkommenszentrum Berlin (Welcome Centre Berlin) offers tips on flat hunting on its website, in particular on the documents usually required: a SCHUFA report (credit check), often a certificate from the previous landlord confirming no rent arrears (Mietschuldenfreiheitsbescheinigung), and a completed tenant self-disclosure form (Mieterselbstauskunft). For publicly subsidized housing, a housing entitlement certificate (Wohnberechtigungsschein, WBS) is required, issued by the district housing offices; according to the Willkommenszentrum, processing can take several weeks to months.
Federal law: basics of tenancy law
The central tenancy rules are set out nationwide in the Bürgerliches Gesetzbuch (BGB, Civil Code). Under § 551 Abs. 1 BGB, the deposit (rent security) may not exceed three times the net monthly rent. Ordinary termination of a tenancy by tenants is possible under § 573c Abs. 1 BGB at the latest on the third working day of a calendar month, effective at the end of the month after next, which in practice corresponds to a notice period of around three months; this period is fixed by law for tenants and may not be shortened to their disadvantage by contract, while the notice period for landlords is extended by three months each after five and after eight years of tenancy.
Implementation in Berlin: rent index and rent cap
The Berlin rent index 2026 (Berliner Mietspiegel) was published by the Senatsverwaltung für Stadtentwicklung, Bauen und Wohnen (Senate Department for Urban Development, Building and Housing) on 28 May 2026 (official announcement in the Amtsblatt für Berlin on 29 May 2026) and replaces the rent index 2024. It is a qualified rent index under § 558d BGB, is based on around 17,000 rent and fittings data records and covers around 1.6 million flats relevant to the rent index; the determined average net cold rent is 7.71 euros per square metre. It can be consulted online via mietspiegel.berlin.de; the rent index service telephone provides information at 030 90173-3860 (e-mail mietspiegel@senstadt.berlin.de). The rent cap (Mietpreisbremse) has applied in Berlin since 1 January 2026 on the basis of a Mietenbegrenzungsverordnung (Rent Limitation Ordinance) adopted by the Senate on 11 November 2025 and limited until 31 December 2029, covering the entire city area as an area with a tight housing market; under it, the rent agreed at the start of the tenancy may in principle exceed the local comparative rent by at most ten percent (§ 556d BGB). Exempt under § 556f BGB are flats used and let for the first time after 1 October 2014, as well as the first letting after comprehensive modernization.
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