Enforcement of the misappropriation statute

Questions & Answers

Why is the misappropriation of living space prohibited in Munich?

Affordable housing is in short supply in Munich.
The ban on the misappropriation of housing is intended to prevent all measures that take housing away from the Munich housing market. The task of the Housing Preservation Department is therefore to preserve the housing stock throughout the city. The ban on misappropriation has been in force in Munich since 1972.

Is every misuse automatically prohibited?

No. If less than 50 per cent of the living space is used as an office, for example, and the remaining living space is otherwise regularly occupied, there is no misappropriation of living space.
This also applies in the case of use as a holiday flat (see below).

Do I need any other permits in addition to the misappropriation licence?

Permits from the local building commission, the landlord or under commercial law may also be required.
There may also be an obligation to inform the tax office.

Is there a fine for unauthorised misappropriation?

Yes, unauthorised misappropriation of living space is an administrative offence.
According to Art. 5 of the law on the prohibition of misappropriation of residential space in conjunction with § 14 of the statutes of the City of Munich on the prohibition of misappropriation of residential space, anyone who uses or transfers residential space for purposes other than residential purposes without the required authorisation is committing an administrative offence. These administrative offences can be punished with a fine of up to 500,000 euros per violation.

How does the official procedure work?

There are several options:

• After an application has been submitted, it is checked whether the requirements for (possibly subsequent) authorisation of the misappropriation are met. Following the examination, the authorisation is granted - or not.
• An appeal can be lodged against the rejection of the application.
• If there is no application, it will be checked whether the specific facts of the case constitute a misappropriation of living space. If this is the case, the authority will contact the person involved and clarify the legal situation.
• Ultimately, the authority is authorised to prevent the misappropriation by means of an order. Legal action can also be taken against this order.

The City of Munich has no influence on the duration of legal proceedings.

I have reported a misappropriation, obviously nothing is happening. Why?

There may be several reasons for this:

• An inspection may have revealed that there is no misappropriation or that it has been authorised.
• Another possibility is that the rooms are not residential premises at all according to the law on misappropriation.
• Another possibility is that the official or court proceedings have not yet been finalised.

We ask for your understanding that, for data protection reasons, no information may be provided on specific individual cases.

The above information is of a general nature.

If you have any further questions, you can obtain more detailed information by calling the telephone numbers listed here (see Contact).

You can also make an appointment there for a personal consultation.

Information on the subject of holiday apartments

What is a holiday flat?

According to the law on misappropriation, a holiday flat exists if a flat or house is not regularly occupied on a permanent basis, but is only rented out for a short-term period for the purpose of providing accommodation for tourists.
This also includes the letting of accommodation to persons who are staying in Munich for the purpose of medical treatment.

What is permitted without authorisation?

Letting living space as a holiday flat is not automatically a misappropriation requiring authorisation.
The following - non-exhaustive - list of examples of holiday apartment offers in the city of Munich are not objectionable under misappropriation law:

1. Holiday apartment offers in individual rooms of one's own flat
   In a family flat of 90 square metres that is permanently occupied by the owner, only the former children's room of 10 square metres that has become vacant is temporarily rented out to guests for holiday purposes. The guests also use the bathroom and kitchen during their stay.
2. Offer of the entire flat as a holiday flat during your own holiday or other absence
   During your own holiday or other absence, your "own" flat or house can be offered as a holiday flat for up to a TOTAL of 8 weeks (= 56 calendar days, also spread over several shorter periods) per calendar year. The flat or house is otherwise occupied in the usual sense.

What is prohibited and requires authorisation?

It is prohibited to permanently let a flat or house in the city of Munich exclusively as a holiday home.
This deprives the housing market of valuable living space.

What else needs to be considered?

Permits from the landlord's local building commission or licences under commercial law may also be required. There may also be an obligation to provide information to the tax office.

To clarify your specific individual case, we recommend that you contact our colleagues in the holiday flats team at ferienwohnungen.soz@muenchen.de. They will provide you with information on the legal situation in your specific case.

Information on the topic of vacancies

Why can a vacant property also be a misappropriation?

If living space is vacant even though it could actually be occupied, the housing market is being deprived (withheld) of living space in the same way as if the living space were being used as an office, for example.

When does a vacancy legally constitute a misappropriation?

In principle, a misappropriation can be assumed if living space is vacant for longer than three months without an authorised reason.

Is every vacancy of living space for three months or more a misappropriation?

Not every vacancy of living space that lasts longer than three months automatically constitutes an unauthorised misappropriation of living space.

Permissible reasons for a vacancy lasting longer than three months are, for example

• if the living space is to be sold.
• if the living space is to be modernised/renovated and is therefore vacant.
• if the rooms are no longer residential premises in terms of the law on misappropriation. This may be the case if it is economically unreasonable to repair the rooms.
• if the ownership structure has not been clarified beyond doubt, for example in the case of inheritance disputes.