Subletting a room in Germany: what subtenants need to know (2026)
Subletting a room in Germany: what subtenants need to know
You are a tenant with the full protection of German tenancy law, but your contract is with the Hauptmieter, not with the owner.
Subletting a room for residential use is residential tenancy: § 551 BGB caps the Kaution (security deposit) at three months' net cold rent, and § 538 BGB keeps you off the hook for normale Abnutzung (normal wear and tear). Before you pay anything, check that the Hauptmieter is actually allowed to sublet (§§ 540, 553 BGB).
§ 540 Abs. 1 BGBIn 60 seconds
Your contract is with the Hauptmieter (main tenant). The owner is not your landlord; they have merely consented to the subletting.
Ask to see the owner's permission before you sign. Without it the Hauptmieter risks a warning and termination, and your room hangs on that.
§ 551 BGB governs the deposit: at most three months' net cold rent of your sublet, held separately and bearing interest. Get a receipt for any cash payment.
If your furnished room is part of the dwelling your landlord occupies themselves, notice may be given up to the 15th of a month with effect from the end of that same month (§ 573c Abs. 3 BGB). You may have to leave at very short notice.
You are not liable for normale Abnutzung (§ 538 BGB). At move-out you return the room to the Hauptmieter (§ 546 Abs. 1 BGB), and they decide in the first instance about your deposit.
What the law says
Without the landlord's permission the tenant is not entitled to allow a third party to use the property, in particular not to sublet it. For part of the dwelling the Hauptmieter can require that permission under § 553 Abs. 1 BGB; there is no such claim for the whole dwelling.
What changes compared with an ordinary tenancy
| Question | Renting from the owner | Subletting a room |
|---|---|---|
| Contract partner | the owner or a managing agent | the Hauptmieter, a private individual |
| Deposit | in a separate deposit account | usually in a current account, though § 551 Abs. 3 BGB requires the same treatment |
| Ending the contract | statutory periods, full security of tenure | very short notice for a furnished room in the landlord's own dwelling (§ 573c Abs. 3 BGB) |
What to check before you pay the deposit
A sublet is missing exactly the things that keep an ordinary tenancy orderly: no deposit account, no managing agent, often no written contract, and almost never a handover record. What remains is an understanding between two private individuals.
Three questions settle most of it in advance. Does the owner's permission exist? Is the deposit within what § 551 BGB allows? And is the condition of the room recorded before you move in?
The last one is yours to handle, with BildProof: scan every room, sealed, €9.99 per property.
The contract models behind all this: Shared flat and subletting. How to get the money back afterwards: Getting your Kaution back from the Hauptmieter.
What it means for each side
- Ask to see the owner's permission before you pay anything.
- Pay the deposit by transfer, or get a signed receipt.
- Insist on a record covering the room and the shared spaces.
- Note your landlord's address for the period after you move out.
- As Hauptmieter you need permission for every sublet (§ 540 BGB).
- You are the landlord here: the deposit duties in § 551 BGB fall on you.
- You remain liable to the owner for the whole flat, this room included.
- A record for each changeover protects you first.
Common mistakes
If an unauthorised sublet comes to light, the Hauptmieter faces a warning and termination, and you lose the room with it.
You would later have to prove that you paid at all.
An oral agreement is valid, but in a dispute it is one word against another, above all on rent, deposit and notice.
What to do next
Before committing, establish which WG model applies and whether the owner's permission exists.
Put the sublease in writing: rent, deposit, notice period, and use of the shared rooms.
At move-in, capture the room, the shared spaces and the inventory with a date.
Pay the deposit traceably and keep the receipt.
Frequently asked questions
Does the owner have to consent to the subletting?
Yes. Without the landlord's permission the Hauptmieter may not hand the room over (§ 540 Abs. 1 BGB). For part of the dwelling they do have a claim to that permission, provided a legitimate interest arose after their own contract was concluded (§ 553 Abs. 1 BGB). Ask about it before signing, because without permission your room depends on a termination you cannot influence.
How much deposit can be charged for a room?
At most three months' net cold rent for the room as agreed in the sublet, excluding operating costs (§ 551 Abs. 1 BGB). What the Hauptmieter deposited with the owner is irrelevant. They must hold your deposit separately from their own assets and pay interest on it, even though that rarely happens in practice.
What notice period applies to a furnished room?
If the furnished room is part of the dwelling your landlord occupies themselves, § 573c Abs. 3 BGB applies: notice may be given up to the 15th of a month with effect from the end of that same month. If they do not live in the same dwelling, or the room is unfurnished, the general periods apply.
This page gives general information as at the date shown. It does not replace legal advice on an individual case.