Rundfunkbeitrag: Standard Registration

One household — one contribution. Register online in 5 minutes.

✓ Verified: 15/08/2026

WHAT TO DO

Register on rundfunkbeitrag.de ('Anmelden'): 18.36 € per flat per month. The law requires you to report the move-in without delay (§ 8 (1) RBStV); more than a month late is a regulatory offence

AUTHORITY

ARD ZDF Deutschlandradio Beitragsservice

Public body

Online service

DOCUMENTS 1

Meldebescheinigung (address registration certificate from the Bürgeramt)
Registration certificate (Anmeldebestätigung, issued by Bürgeramt)

Registration

The Rundfunkbeitrag is the mandatory contribution from every household to fund ARD, ZDF and Deutschlandradio. The principle: one household — one contribution, regardless of how many people live there.

How to register

Registration is fully online at rundfunkbeitrag.de. You need your personal details and bank account information for a SEPA direct debit. No documents need to be uploaded.

Deadline

This is a legal duty, not a suggestion: § 8 (1) RBStV requires you to report the move-in without delay (unverzüglich). Failing to report the start of liability within one month is a regulatory offence (§ 12 (1) no. 1 RBStV) and can be fined. In practice the advice matches the money side: do it in the first week after your Anmeldung at the Bürgeramt.

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While you're at it: check your electricity tariff →

Since you are sorting household bills — Grundversorgung almost always overcharges by €200–500 a year

› Details and tips

👨🏻‍💻

Max recommends:

I registered at rundfunkbeitrag.de myself in week one — did not wait for a letter. It would come anyway, and self-registration avoids a surprise back-charge for months.

👩🏼‍💼

Lea recommends:

Keep the contribution number from the confirmation: needed for moving, cancelling and changing the payer in a shared flat. I keep it with my tax ID and Kindergeld number.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Just arrived — must I register myself? ▾

Yes, if no letter came. The Beitragsservice writes to addresses from the registration register, but the duty from 18.36 € starts once you are the flat holder — not when the letter arrives.

Per person or per flat? ▾

Per flat: 18.36 € is paid by one household regardless of occupants. A family or couple pays once, not per head — the key fact that saves hundreds in shared flats.

I do not watch TV — still pay? ▾

Yes. Since 2013 the fee is device-independent — the flat pays. Exemption is only on social grounds, not for having no television.

Rundfunkbeitrag: Standard Registration

How to register

Deadline

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

What comes next

Similar steps in other routes

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