Wohnungsgeberbestätigung: who signs it for your Anmeldung when you stay with family

🇩🇪 DE · documents · 2026-09-29

Translating to Swedish. Showing the English original for now.

To register your address in Germany (the Anmeldung), you need a move-in confirmation called the Wohnungsgeberbestätigung, and it has to come from the person who actually gives you the place to live. If you are staying with relatives, that person is usually the relative whose home it is, not a landlord you have never met. If your relatives rent the flat themselves, they can still sign it; the form then has to name the owner as well. You have two weeks from moving in to register, and the person housing you has the same two weeks to give you the confirmation.

What the Wohnungsgeberbestätigung is

The Federal Act on Registration (Bundesmeldegesetz, BMG) makes registration a duty for anyone who moves into a residence. Section 17 says you must register with the registration authority within two weeks of moving in. Section 19 adds a second duty, this one for the "supplier of the residence" (Wohnungsgeber): that person has to confirm your move-in within the same period, either in writing to you or electronically to the registration office.

The office wants this paper because it is the proof that you really live at the address. A rental contract does not replace it. The Berlin registration page says so directly: presenting a tenancy agreement does not replace the landlord confirmation.

"Residence" is wide in this law. Section 20 defines it as any enclosed space used for living or sleeping, so a spare room at your aunt's flat counts in the same way as a flat of your own.

Who signs it when you live with relatives or in a sublet

The confirmation is signed by the supplier of the residence or by someone that person has commissioned to do it. Section 19 (1) also says the confirmation may only be issued by those people. Nobody else can sign it for them, and you cannot sign it for yourself.

The supplier does not have to be the owner. Section 19 (3) lists what the confirmation contains, and the first item is the name and address of the supplier and, if that person is not the owner, also the name of the owner. That wording covers the common cases:

You stay with relatives who own the home. Your relative is the supplier and the owner. One name and address is enough.
You stay with relatives who rent. Your relative is the supplier. The form carries their name and address plus the name of the owner of the flat.
You sublet a room from a main tenant. The main tenant is the supplier, and again the owner's name goes on the form.

The landlord's permission is a separate question

The move-in confirmation and the landlord's consent to your stay sit in two different laws. The Federal Registration Act asks the supplier of the residence to confirm that you moved in. Section 19 does not make that confirmation depend on the owner's approval.

Permission comes from tenancy law. Section 540 of the Civil Code (BGB) says a tenant may not let a third party use the rented home, in particular sublet it, without the landlord's permission. Section 553 BGB gives the tenant a claim to that permission for part of the home when a legitimate interest arises after the contract was signed. The landlord can refuse only for an important reason in the person of the third party, if the home would be overcrowded, or if the landlord cannot reasonably be expected to accept it for other reasons, and may ask for a reasonable rent increase as a condition.

So when the landlord of your relatives asks for documents, that request belongs to their tenancy. It is worth settling, but the paper you take to the registration office is still the one your relatives sign as your supplier.

What the confirmation must say

Section 19 (3) BMG lists four items:

the name and address of the supplier of the residence and, if that person is not the owner, the name of the owner;
the date you moved in;
the address of the residence;
the names of everyone who has to register at that address.

The Berlin page repeats the same list and adds that the supplier confirms the move-in in writing with a signature. Whatever template your city uses, the legal content is the four items above.

There is also an electronic route. Under section 19 (4), a supplier who confirms directly to the registration office receives a reference number, which they pass to you so you can use it when registering.

Deadlines and fines

Both deadlines are two weeks from the day you move in: yours to register (section 17 (1)) and the supplier's to confirm (section 19 (1)).

Section 54 lists what counts as an administrative offence. It includes not registering, or not registering in good time, and it includes a supplier who does not confirm a move-in, or does not do it in good time. For these cases the fine can be up to 1,000 euros. A much higher cap, up to 50,000 euros, applies to offering an address for registration when nobody actually moves in there, which section 19 (6) prohibits. So an address from a friend you do not live with is not a shortcut.

If you arrive from abroad for a short stay, section 27 (2) matters. A person who otherwise lives abroad and is not registered in Germany has to register only once three months have passed. If your stay is longer than that, you register. If you are coming to look for work, see Germany's Opportunity Card in 2026.

If the confirmation does not arrive

Section 19 (2) covers the case directly: if the supplier refuses to give the confirmation, or you do not receive it in time for another reason, you must tell the registration office without delay. Contacting the office before your two weeks run out, and keeping a note of when you did, puts the problem on record.

Country specifics: registering in Berlin

Registration rules are federal, but the appointment system and forms belong to each city. If you still need a flat, see how to find an apartment in Berlin. The Berlin service page for registering a sole or main residence lists these points:

register within 14 days of moving in;
no fee is charged;
bring the completed registration form, your passport or ID, and the move-in confirmation if you rent;
you can send someone else with a written authorisation;
you receive a registration certificate (Meldebestätigung) after registering.

Berlin also offers online registration, but the page limits it to adults who are German or EU citizens, have moved within Germany and have an ID card with the online function activated. Someone arriving from abroad on a working holiday visa will usually need the in-person appointment.

The registered address is also where your tax ID usually arrives. The Federal Central Tax Office says it communicates the tax identification number by post only, and sends it to an address other than your registered one only with a written authorisation. That is one more reason not to leave the Anmeldung until late in your stay.

FAQ

Can my relative sign the Wohnungsgeberbestätigung if they rent the flat?

Yes. The law asks for the supplier of the residence, who does not have to be the owner. The confirmation then also names the owner.

Is my rental contract enough instead?

No. Berlin's registration page states that a tenancy agreement does not replace the move-in confirmation.

How long do I have to register?

Two weeks from moving in under section 17 BMG. Berlin states it as 14 days.

What if the person housing me refuses to sign?

Tell the registration office without delay. Section 19 (2) puts that duty on you when the confirmation is refused or late.

Can a friend give me their address for registration if I do not live there?

No. Section 19 (6) prohibits it, and the fine for offering such an address can reach 50,000 euros.

I am only in Germany for a few weeks. Do I have to register?

If you normally live abroad and are not registered in Germany, the duty starts after three months (section 27 (2)).

Do my relatives need their landlord's permission for me to stay?

That is a tenancy question under sections 540 and 553 BGB, separate from registration. A tenant can claim permission for part of the home when a legitimate interest arises after signing, with limited exceptions.

How Jobsy fits

We build Jobsy, a job search service for Europe that searches for you: you say what work you want, and Jobsy finds employers and recruitment agencies, including in Germany, and prepares outreach in the language of the recipient. It does not handle registration or paperwork with the Bürgeramt. The first result is free, and Jobsy Active, which keeps the search going, costs €6.70 a month.

Sources

Sources: Federal Act on Registration (BMG), English translation by the Federal Ministry of the Interior · BMG section 17: Registration and deregistration (German) · BMG section 19: Cooperation by the supplier of the residence (German) · BMG section 27: Exceptions to the registration requirement (German) · BMG section 54: Fines (German) · Civil Code (BGB) section 540: Letting a third party use the rented property (German) · Civil Code (BGB) section 553: Permission to let a third party use part of the home (German) · Service Berlin: Register a sole or main residence · Federal Central Tax Office (BZSt): Tax identification number