Rent increase deadlines: by when you must consent and from when you pay

Rent increase deadlines: all deadlines at a glance

Which deadline applies depends on what the landlord bases the rent increase on. A general "notice period" for a rent increase is not set out in the law as such. What is usually meant is the gap between receipt of the letter and the month from which you pay more. For the comparative rent, that is at least two full calendar months.

Type of increase	Waiting period before the increase	Consent needed?	New rent from	Basis
Comparative rent	request one year after the last increase at the earliest, rent unchanged for 15 months when the increase takes effect	yes	start of the 3rd calendar month after receipt	Sec. 558, 558b BGB
Modernisation	no blocking period; announcement of the measure no later than 3 months before it starts	no	start of the 3rd month after receipt, 6 months later if the announcement was flawed	Sec. 555c, 559b BGB
Graduated rent	each step unchanged for at least 1 year	no	on the agreed date	Sec. 557a BGB
Index-linked rent	rent unchanged for at least 1 year	no	start of the month after next following receipt	Sec. 557b BGB
Flat rate for operating costs	right to increase reserved in the tenancy agreement	no	start of the month after next following the declaration	Sec. 560 BGB
Increase by agreement	none	agreement	as agreed	Sec. 557 (1) BGB

How much the landlord may demand, i.e. the cap and the comparative rent, and how they must justify the increase, is explained in the guide Rent increase. This guide is about the dates.

Waiting period and 15 months: when the landlord may increase the rent at the earliest

For the comparative rent, two time limits apply side by side (Sec. 558 (1) BGB):

1. One-year waiting period: The request for an increase may reach you one year after the last rent increase at the earliest.
2. 15 months: At the time from which the new rent is to apply, the previous rent must have been unchanged for 15 months.

Because the new rent only applies from the third calendar month after receipt, the two limits together mean at least 15 months between two increases. Increases because of modernisation or higher operating costs are not counted (Sec. 558 (1) sentence 3 BGB). What this means in practice for how often the rent may rise is set out in the guide Rent increase.

Example after an increase: The last increase has applied since 1 June 2026. The next request may reach you on 1 June 2027 at the earliest. If it is received in June 2027, the new rent applies from 1 September 2027. That is exactly 15 months.

Example after moving in: Your tenancy began on 1 March 2026. An increase up to the comparative rent can reach you in March 2027 at the earliest and then applies from 1 June 2027.

Change of owner: The new owner takes over your tenancy agreement (Sec. 566 BGB). The waiting period and the 15 months simply continue to run; the sale does not restart them.

Consent period: how to calculate it

Three rules are enough for every calculation:

1. Receipt counts: The deadline starts when the letter reaches you, usually when it is put in your letterbox (Sec. 130 (1) BGB). The date on the letter does not matter. Because text form is sufficient (Sec. 558a (1), Sec. 126b BGB), the increase can also come by email.
2. The month of receipt does not count: Only the following month is the first. Your consent period ends at the end of the second calendar month after receipt (Sec. 558b (2) sentence 1 BGB).
3. New rent: If you consent, you pay the increased rent from the start of the third calendar month after receipt (Sec. 558b (1) BGB).

So the deadline is at least two and at most just under three months long. A single day can make a difference of a month:

Receipt on Wednesday, 30 June 2027: consent period until Tuesday, 31 August 2027, new rent from 1 September 2027, the landlord's deadline for a claim until Tuesday, 30 November 2027.

Receipt on Thursday, 1 July 2027: consent period until Thursday, 30 September 2027, new rent from 1 October 2027, deadline for a claim until Friday, 31 December 2027.

Deadline ending at the weekend: If the end of the consent period falls on a Saturday, Sunday or public holiday, Sec. 193 BGB moves it to the next working day. Even so, plan for your reply to reach the landlord on the last working day before that. Apart from the Day of German Unity, the public holidays that apply are set by the federal states.

Deadline calendar: from receipt to the deadline for a claim

Calculated in accordance with Sec. 558b and Sec. 561 BGB. The column "End of tenancy" applies if you give extraordinary notice on the last day of the consent period.

Increase received in	Consent by	New rent from	Special termination: end of tenancy	Landlord's claim by
November 2026	Sun, 31 January 2027	Mon, 1 February 2027	Wed, 31 March 2027	Fri, 30 April 2027
December 2026	Sun, 28 February 2027	Mon, 1 March 2027	Fri, 30 April 2027	Mon, 31 May 2027
January 2027	Wed, 31 March 2027	Thu, 1 April 2027	Mon, 31 May 2027	Wed, 30 June 2027
February 2027	Fri, 30 April 2027	Sat, 1 May 2027	Wed, 30 June 2027	Sat, 31 July 2027
March 2027	Mon, 31 May 2027	Tue, 1 June 2027	Sat, 31 July 2027	Tue, 31 August 2027
April 2027	Wed, 30 June 2027	Thu, 1 July 2027	Tue, 31 August 2027	Thu, 30 September 2027
May 2027	Sat, 31 July 2027	Sun, 1 August 2027	Thu, 30 September 2027	Sun, 31 October 2027
June 2027	Tue, 31 August 2027	Wed, 1 September 2027	Sun, 31 October 2027	Tue, 30 November 2027
July 2027	Thu, 30 September 2027	Fri, 1 October 2027	Tue, 30 November 2027	Fri, 31 December 2027
August 2027	Sun, 31 October 2027	Mon, 1 November 2027	Fri, 31 December 2027	Mon, 31 January 2028
September 2027	Tue, 30 November 2027	Wed, 1 December 2027	Mon, 31 January 2028	Tue, 29 February 2028
October 2027	Fri, 31 December 2027	Sat, 1 January 2028	Tue, 29 February 2028	Fri, 31 March 2028

What you can do within the deadline

As long as the consent period is running, you do not need to rush anything. You have four options:

• Consent: The new rent applies from the third calendar month after receipt. The law does not prescribe a form, but for proof you should consent in writing or by email.
• Partly consent: If only part is justified, for example up to the cap, you consent only to that part. The law expressly provides for this ("insofar as", Sec. 558b (1) and (2) BGB). For the rest, the landlord has to sue.
• Do not consent: Silence is not consent. The landlord then has to sue or drop the matter. Caution: if you simply transfer the higher amount, this can count as consent.
• Give notice: With the special right of termination, you can get out of the contract without paying the increase (next section).

Check before the deadline expires:

1. When exactly did the letter arrive? Note the date and keep the envelope.
2. Was the last increase at least one year ago, and will the rent have been unchanged for 15 months on the date stated?
3. Is the increase declared in text form and justified, for example with the rent index (Mietspiegel) (Sec. 558a BGB)?
4. Does the letter come from all landlords, and is it addressed to all tenants?
5. Does the new rent stay within the cap and the comparative rent? Details in the guide Rent increase.
6. If a property management company or a lawyer sends the letter without an original power of attorney, you can reject it without delay, unless the landlord has informed you of the power of attorney (Sec. 174 BGB).

Special right of termination after a rent increase: deadline and end of tenancy

If the landlord requests an increase up to the comparative rent or because of modernisation, you can give extraordinary notice until the end of the second month after receipt of their declaration, with effect from the end of the month after next. The rent increase then does not take effect (Sec. 561 (1) BGB). So the old rent applies to you until you move out.

Example: The increase reaches you on 10 March 2027. You can give notice until 31 May 2027. If you give notice in May, the tenancy ends on 31 July 2027. If you give notice as early as April, it ends on 30 June 2027.

The notice must be in writing, i.e. signed by hand on paper or with a qualified electronic signature (Sec. 568 (1), Sec. 126, 126a BGB). Unlike the rent increase, a simple email is not enough here. With graduated and index-linked rent, there is no such special right of termination, because Sec. 561 BGB only refers to Sec. 558 and 559 BGB. How to give notice without a particular reason is explained in the guide Notice period for a rented flat.

The landlord's deadline for a claim: 3 months after the end of the consent period

If you do not consent by the end of the consent period, the landlord can sue for consent. They must bring the claim within a further three months (Sec. 558b (2) BGB). If your consent period ends on 31 August, their deadline for a claim runs until 30 November.

• Suing earlier: The landlord cannot sue before the end of your consent period, even if you have already refused.
• Brought: The claim is brought when it is served on you (Sec. 253 (1) ZPO). If the landlord files it in time and it is served shortly afterwards, service takes effect retroactively from the date of filing (Sec. 167 ZPO).
• Court: Exclusive jurisdiction lies with the local court (Amtsgericht) for the district in which the flat is located (Sec. 23 no. 2 (a) GVG, Sec. 29a ZPO).
• Errors in the letter: If the request did not meet the requirements as to form and reasons, the landlord can remedy this during the proceedings. You are then entitled to the consent period again (Sec. 558b (3) BGB).
• Judgment: If the court rules in the landlord's favour, the judgment replaces your consent once it becomes final (Sec. 894 ZPO). You then owe the increased rent from the date on which it would have applied if you had consented in time.
• Deadline missed: If the landlord sues too late, their request has lapsed. They must make a new request, and all deadlines start again.

Deadline not met: what applies then

Error	Consequence	Basis
Request arrives before the one-year waiting period has expired	invalid, the landlord must make it again once the period has expired	Sec. 558 (1) sentence 2 BGB
Date stated is before the 15 months have expired	increase at the earliest from the permissible date	Sec. 558 (1) sentence 1 BGB
Letter sets a shorter consent period, e.g. 2 weeks	the statutory deadline still applies, a claim only afterwards	Sec. 558b (2) and (4) BGB
New rent is to apply earlier than from the 3rd calendar month	you only owe it from the 3rd calendar month after receipt	Sec. 558b (1) and (4) BGB
You let the consent period pass	no consent, no increase; the landlord can sue	Sec. 558b (2) BGB
Landlord does not sue within 3 months	request has lapsed, a new request is needed	Sec. 558b (2) sentence 2 BGB
Modernisation not properly announced or increase more than 10% above the announced amount	payable 6 months later	Sec. 559b (2) BGB
Index-linked increase earlier than after 1 year	not permitted, the rent must remain unchanged for 1 year	Sec. 557b (2) BGB

These rules may not be departed from to your disadvantage, not even in the tenancy agreement (Sec. 558 (6), Sec. 558b (4), Sec. 561 (2) BGB).

Deadlines for modernisation, graduated rent and index-linked rent

Modernisation

Here, four deadlines run one after the other:

1. Announcement: The landlord must announce the modernisation in text form no later than 3 months before it starts, stating the type, scope, start, duration and the expected rent increase (Sec. 555c (1) BGB).
2. Hardship objection: You must notify circumstances that mean hardship for you in text form by the end of the month following receipt of the announcement (Sec. 555d (3) BGB). The deadline only runs if the announcement meets the statutory requirements. If the landlord has not informed you of the form and deadline, you are not bound by either. However, you must then notify grounds of hardship against the rent increase no later than the start of the work (Sec. 555d (4) sentence 2 and (5) BGB).
3. Special termination after the announcement: Also until the end of the following month, you can give notice with effect from the end of the month after next (Sec. 555e (1) BGB).
4. Declaration of increase: After the work, the landlord declares the increase in text form with a calculation. You pay from the start of the third month after receipt. The deadline is extended by 6 months if the announcement was missing or flawed or if the increase exceeds the announced amount by more than 10% (Sec. 559b (1) and (2) BGB). Here too, you have the special right of termination under Sec. 561 BGB.

Example: The declaration of increase reaches you on 10 March 2027. You pay the higher rent from 1 June 2027. If the announcement was flawed, only from 1 December 2027.

You do not need to consent to an increase after modernisation. You should still check whether only genuine modernisation costs are passed on and whether the limits of 8% of the costs per year and €3 (€2 if the rent is below €7 per m²) per m² in 6 years are observed (Sec. 559 (1) to (3a) BGB).

Graduated rent

The increases are already set out in the contract, as euro amounts. Each step must apply for at least one year, and you pay from the agreed date without any further letter (Sec. 557a (1) and (2) BGB). Increases up to the comparative rent or because of modernisation are excluded while the graduated rent applies. More in the guide Graduated rent.

Index-linked rent

The landlord must declare the change in text form, stating the change in the index and the new rent or the amount of the increase. You pay from the start of the month after next following receipt (Sec. 557b (3) BGB): if the declaration is received on 20 October 2026, the new rent applies from 1 December 2026. There must be at least one year between two adjustments. A limit on index-linked rent is planned but not yet in force (draft bill, Bundestag printed paper 21/6807, as of November 2026). You can check the calculation with the guide Index-linked rent.

Flat rate for operating costs and advance payments

If you pay a flat rate and the tenancy agreement permits increases, the landlord can pass on higher operating costs in text form with reasons. You owe the amount from the start of the month after next following the declaration, in some circumstances also retroactively for the previous year (Sec. 560 (1) and (2) BGB). Both sides may adjust advance payments after a statement (Sec. 560 (4) BGB); more on this in the guide Service charge statement deadline.

Commercial premises and garages

The deadlines of Sec. 558 to 561 BGB apply to tenancies of residential premises. For commercial premises, a rent increase is governed by the contract, because Sec. 578 (2) BGB does not refer to Sec. 557 to 561 BGB. A garage with its own contract is not part of the flat; if it is let together with the flat under the tenancy agreement for the flat, it is treated like the flat.