Notice period
For a normal open-ended contract, tenants give three months' notice (§ 573c BGB). If the landlord receives your letter by the third working day of a month, that month counts: notice received by the third working day of March ends the tenancy on 31 May. Saturdays don't count as working days here, and public holidays depend on the federal state, so send the letter a few days early. The form suggests the end date from today; the date that counts is when the landlord receives the letter.
Some contracts exclude notice for a while (Kündigungsverzicht, at most four years) or are fixed-term. Check your contract first; our guide on ending a tenancy explains these cases and the special rights to give notice.
Form: paper and signatures
- The notice must be on paper with a handwritten signature (§ 568 BGB). An e-mail, fax, WhatsApp message or a scanned letter is not enough.
- If several people signed the contract, all of them must sign the notice. Enter one name per line; the PDF has a signature line for each.
- Address the letter to the landlord named in the contract, or to the property management if it acts for the landlord.
How to send it
You must be able to prove when the letter arrived. Hand it over in person in front of a witness who has read it, or send it by Einwurf-Einschreiben early enough before the third working day. Keep a copy.
Plan the move-out early: agree on a handover date, take photos and meter readings, and read how to get your deposit back.