Most people outside of Germany probably do not realize that the German public broadcasters are not financed by taxes, donations, and grants as in the US or a TV licence as in the UK. In Germany, prior to January 1, 2013 public broadcasting was financed similar to in the UK: If you owned a TV or radio you had to pay. If you did not possess such a device then you did not have to pay. This changed on January 1, 2013. Since then, every household, regardless of income, size, or even proof of non-possession of a receiving device, is required to pay a mandatory €18.36 monthly fee for the mere “possibility” of consuming public broadcasting content. There is no opt-out. Those who refuse to pay what is known as the “Rundfunkbeitrag”, and try to fight it, typically end up having the funds seized from their bank accounts without even a court order. This fee is effectively a regressive tax applied to all living quarters throughout Germany, and for obvious reasons is hugely controversial. The public broadcasters ARD ZDF and Deutschland Radio receive over 9 billion euros annually via this system in order to finance their directors’ >€400,000 salaries and enhanced pensions. Due to its mandatory nature, the Rundfunkbeitrag also violates Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights, as well as Article 11 Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union which state that Everyone has the right to freedom of expression which includes "freedom to hold opinions and to receive and impart information and ideas without interference by public authority and regardless of frontiers." And before anyone says it, NO, the EU did not deem the Rundfunkbeitrag as being in accordance with EU law. They only ruled on its aspects of state aid. They explicitly avoided any questions regarding its fairness and human rights, which would handled by a different court. The best way to deal with the Beitragservice is to not interact with them at all in any way - ever. If you are already paying. Stop paying. If you are thinking of paying, don’t. Do not under any circumstances contact them, as doing so would confirm that you have received their letters. I have been in Germany for over 16 years and have never paid a single cent to those idiots. I have also not received any letters from them for several years and the next time I do, if ever, I will simply use the 550 5.1.1 method described below. But first a little more background regarding these idiots: The Beitragservice operates on the assumption that everyone in Germany is "registered", similar to sex offenders in the US, at the Einwohnermeldeamt. Keep in mind, that the only information that the Beitragservice has to go by, unless you help them, is a list of names and addresses that they regularly receive from the Einwohnermeldeamt to which they then send their spam. GDPR be damned! The Beitragservice does not care about you per se, but rather the "ownership of a flat" (Inhaberschaft einer Wohnung) which is why, when you look at their "bills" (aka "spam") you will see "1 Wohnung = €XXX". If they really had their act together they would assign the "account number" to dwellings and not individuals, but they don't do this and seem to have a difficult time keeping things straight, especially over time, which is why they rely on their potential new victims providing the account numbers of those who are already paying. (…again, GDPR be damned!) A question to ask yourself is why can’t the Beitragservice themselves not keep track of the flats for which they are already getting paid? Clearly, it is a nightmare for them to keep track of what they are doing if all they really have to go by is a spamming list ...unless you help them. Contrary to what you might hear, the Beitragservice is NOT an official agent of the German state (Behörde), but they turn to the state to enforce their will, which makes German public television de facto state television (Staatsfernsehen) by proxy. This is cumbersome, inefficient, and controversial, which I will not get into. The point I am trying to make is to stay out of its way as best as you can. Their only tool is a list of spamming addresses, and we all know what happens when we reply to spam. The SMTP error 550 5.1.1 (email) essentially informs the sender that the intended recipient does not exist. When dealing with the Beitragservice it is in your best interest to do the same. The first rule is, first and foremost, do not open their letters when they arrive in your mailbox. Instead, very quickly, either you or have someone else take the letter to your local Post and tell the person at the counter that the addressee had recently moved out and to kindly return the letter to the sender. The Post will put a sticker on the letter stating that the addressee has moved and the Beitragservice will need to update their mailing list. Rinse, wash, and repeat until the letters cease altogether, which they eventually will. Congratulations! Sie sind befreit! You will then be able to live in peace without being regularly harassed by the Beitragservice. And before you ask, no, the Beitragservice will not send a bailiff to your door looking for you if they cannot verify your existence in the first place, which is what they assume if their letters do not bounce back. People leave Germany all the time without deregistering at the Einwohnermeldeamt and the Beitragservice simply does not have the resources to verify the true whereabouts of every individual on their spam list. Currently, there is a lot of controversy regarding corruption and political manipulation surrounding the German public broadcasters. It therefore would not be surprising if the Rundfunkgebühr is soon abolished.
You are absolutely right man they need to get abolished asap , you make so much sense i hope the german people especially the youth stop paying those stupid f€€€€ because i really wants to see what will happen if most of the german population stops paying them for 6 months
I am from Ireland 🇮🇪 and speak a little German I was in Germany 🇩🇪 in my motorhome and was having a conversation about TV reception and the guy asked me "How much is your TV license"???I just looked at him in amazed NOBODY i know in Ireland 🇮🇪 has a TV licence for a motorhome maybe you are supposed to but no one cares......I don't have one for my house 😕 never mind one for when I am 600miles away from it ........enjoyed that very interesting 👍
I was actually looking for a video on the GEZ for our exchange students at the university i work for and didn't find one. And now....it's there! Thank you sooo much, i'm even more glad now that i found you a couple of weeks ago! Keep up the good work, you're doing an awesome job :-)
@@simplegermany your videos are super informative. This video was very informative i have received the letter and registered to pay the money. Since i will pay the complete money and my wife will not and we stay in same apartment - how can I exempt my wife as she has also received the letter? I want to avoid additional payment and penalty letters for my wife. Kindly help
Hey! I've just discovered your channel and love it! I'm now a subscriber! I am originally from England and have lived in Essen for the last 3 years. I'm looking forward to checking your other videos. I'm learning German at the moment so these videos really help!
Tank you for explaining the meaning behind this "radio tax" ;) Somehow they considering 1 room in student dorm as a single household. When I arrived in Germany and received THAT letter with orange logo I was so confused. Then I've been told (and all our group at uni) to ignore this letters. So, I end up to pay 300 euro after my first year in Germany. Even I was away for 5 months during that year. The next year I was sharing 3 room accomodation in a student dorm. Somehow they considered me as a main housholder who has to pay 17,50. Since my german neighbour already was paying her tax in Hamburg, and another neighbour from France didn't want to pay. And the last 6 months in Germany I did not received any single letter from them. So I am still so confused! Why administration of a dorm could not pay and include that in rent price, so foreign students won't have their brain blown away.
Thank you for sharing your experience Klara! We understand how confusing this topic is and we are sorry, you got bad advice. In fact, the administration is not allowed to register each room and then charge it per rent 🤷🏽♀️. For student housing it really depends on whether it is considered a shared flat (WG) or individual flat. We have gone into more detail on our website: www.simplegermany.com/radio-tax-germany/#Do_You_Have_To_Pay_Radio_Tax_As_A_Student_In_Germany
In fact you have to pay for watching this (as long as you live in germany) because even if you dont have a tv or a radio - but you have a PC which is connected to the internet, than you still have to pay the GEZ (or whatever it is called now ;)
@@ralfkraft5415 You are misinformed. Since 2013, you have to pay just for owning an apartment. Before 2013, you ha to pay, if you kept a receiver ready. A computer could count as a receiver, if it was able to receive live broadcasting over the internet. There were computers that could play RU-vid videos but not TV and radio streams, an these computers did not count as receivers. With the change in 2013, these rules have become obsolete anyway.
The difference to a tax is that the fee is purpose-bound and may not be used to finance anything but broadcast productions and infrastructure (maintainance, paperwork etc.). I somehow missed that explanation in the vid.
And also: It's not the politicians that decide over the budget (=the amount of TV "Tax" to be paid), so that they can't punish the broadcasting stations for being critical. This is called the "Staatsferne" (or "government distance") of the stations.
@@heinzk023 “State distance” is a fiction. You don’t bite the hand that feeds you. Besides, ARD and ZDF are perceived as state TV, west German TV, to be more precisely.
In Australia we have the ABC (inspired by the BBC) but there isn't a licensing fee like in the UK and Germany, it comes out of our income tax. ABC radio is sometimes the only service you can get in very remote areas of the country, so it's very important for bushfire warnings etc. I watch 2DF all the time! The German public broadcasters are great for language learners
1. It is not a license fee. You need a license to do something normally forbidden, e.g. in the UK watching TV is forbidden unless you pay for a license. In Germany, TV and radio reception is generally allowed and always has been. However, until 2012 you had to pay a broadcasting fee for using TV and radio, and it was assumed that if you had a receiver, you actually used it for receiving broadcasts. Thus if you had a receiver, you had to pay the fee. Since 2013, there is a broadcasting contribution. Every owner of an apartment has to pay it, regardless if he receives broadcasts or not, just for the offer to receive it. Many people regard it unconstitutional and it its quality more like a head tax than a real contribution. 2. It is not per household, but per apartment. There can be multiple households inside an apartment, like in a shared apartment, but the broadcasting contribution has to be paid only once. 3. “It is in place to prevent fake news.” - No. It doesn’t prevent fake news. 4. The BBC is financed completely differently. In the UK, you need a license for TV and radio. Receiving broadcasts without a license is a crime in the UK. However, if you do not receive broadcasts, you obviously don’t need to pay for a license. It is not compulsive like the German broadcasting contribution. 5. “When you turn your TV on, the first station is usually ARD.” - No. It depends on how you program your TV. 6. “Sendung mit der Maus […] unconventional tips to learn German” - It is generally not a good idea to use German TV shows and movies to learn German as their language style is usually stilted. Die Sendung mit der Maus employs a very awkward pseudo-colloquial phantasy dialect. 7. If you don’t pay the contribution, nothing bad happens. You simply owe your local public broadcasting station money, and maybe you have to pay it later. If you don’t use TV and radio, I highly recommend not to pay the contribution, in order to build up political pressure, as thee current law is just unjust. 8. The Beitragservice has not the right to send you a money collector. The Beitragsservice is not a juristical person and has no rights whatsoever. Your local broadcasting station however can issue a distraint. The authorities in charge may send you a bailiff to seize your property, usually money. You might go to jail for up to six months if you don’t cooperate with the bailiff and don’t disclose where you hide your money. Some people do this on purpose in order to protest the current system.
its not per apartment, you can own multiple apartments and only have to pay once for your registered household. So, if you own multiple residences, you only pay once. Unless you rent them out, in that case the tenant lists the address as a primary residence aka household and has to pay.
@@RedsawSixtySix This is not correct. The law (RBStV) says it’s per apartment. However, the Federal Constitutional Court has deemed this unconstitutional and overruled the law. So prior to its judgement, people with multiple residences had to pay the contribution multiple times. Now they can apply for an exemption, so they only have to pay once.
Been living in Germany since a long time, but this is the best explanation I have seen for why I have to pay the TV tax! I will now feel less pain every time this money is deducted from my account
Definitely an very interesting topic. Well presented, it's not always so easy to understand it, thanks for helping. The funny thing is that a lot of things working very slow because of bureaucracy in Germany, but in cases like this, they are extremely fast. The big question for a lot of people and the arguing about is, why need an intendant from the WDR a salary of €395000, BR €388000, NDR €365000 per year loud Statistica from 2019 for example, a trainee in the third year gets €1207,- per month, €0,14 cents per month from every household are used for the primary TV shows like Tatort and Polizeiruf 110. I mean like to watch channels like ARTE a French/Germany TV channel 3Sat a TV channel co produced from Germany, Austria and Switzerland with a lot of story's, different kind concert's, documentations and movies you want see on privat channels or streaming platforms. It can be really diverse and they can help you to learn the language and also the local dialects. With the RBB for example, i have the chance to something about my hometown Berlin and the region of Brandenburg. Because i don't live there anymore. Thank you guys.
I wasn't aware of this. Literally broke my budget and plans for a bad service I don't want. It's not even serving it's purpose. Not unbiased nor independent
The public broadcasting also has some RU-vid channels. Sometimes for special shows from TV and they have also Channels with “normal” RU-vid content. They have a big variety and you can download them without RU-vid premium.
In the UK, the TV Licence costs €182 Euro per year but over 75s can get an exemption plus if you don't watch live TV or just use your TV to watch DVDs or play games on it, then you do not need a TV Licence, I just lie and I never buy one.
Lol. We have the same thing here in the UK. It's called the TV licence fee. £169 a year. Just for 1 channel the BBC. But you have to have this to watch any live TV from other channels. Even commercial channels like SKY or ITV. Keep up the good work ladies.♦️♦️👌👌
Yes, but in the UK you don’t need a licence if you don’t have a tv. In fact, you can own a tv and still not need a licence if the tv can’t receive broadcasts, eg if it’s just set up to play dvds.
I got my ARD letter pretty much within a week of Anmeldung, right after I got my TAX ID. Its definitely a tax 🤣. but good to know the historical reason. 🙏
In Austria we have kind of a simmilar thing called the GIS. But here in Austria you don't always have to pay it. In Austria the law says you don't have to pay, if you don't have a device that can receive Public Broadcast, so you are not allowed to have a TV or radio device. Exceptions are radio in car and streaming over internet. All those things could be controlled, by people from GIS. They may turn up and want to come in and look for Broadcasting reciever, but they have no offical right to get into your house/flat. So if you don't let them in, they cannot confirm that you have or have not to pay the GIS Beitrag.
At GEZ times (GEZ = Gebühren Einzugs Zentrale) the law in Germany was similary: You have to register your Devices (Per Household one TV if available, one Radio if Available) and Only Radio was cheaper than Radio+TV. The Problem was that many people where lieing and told that they do not have a TV or Radio and the GEZ needed people that controls if they are telling the truth. To avoid this they changed some years ago to the "per Household" assuming that in every household is a device (TV, Radio, Mobile Phone, Internet, Tablet).
Gut erklärt, aber eine kleine Korrektur. Die "GEZ"/Beitragsservice hat seit Jahren (glaub seit 2017) keine "Außendienstmitarbeiter" mehr, die bei Schuldnern klingeln. Das übernimmt nach 6 Monaten dann die Vollstreckungsbehörde bzw Gerichtsvollzieher
It is a law that orders you to pay, so its a tax. I dont care if they renamed it to make it look like its not a tax - also the "Beitragsservice" is not a service. Its the GEZ with a new and nicer sounding name, an euphemism that want to imply its good and useful (a service for you), while its just there to press money out of people.
The biggest difference between a tax and a license fee is that a tax can be used for everything, which the license fee is bound to the purpose. So your vehicle tax doesn't have to be used for things related to vehicles, but the radio and TV license fee is only used within the organizations.
Für Ausländer 'beginnt' mit der Anmeldung das Leben, ohne Anmeldung gibts keine Steuernummer, also auch kein korrektes Gehalt, ohne Anmeldung gibts auch kein ordentliches Bankkonto oder einen Internetvertrag. Aber halt dich fest, ohne Schufa gibts meistens keine Wohnung. Aber eine Schufa-Auskunft beginnt erst mit der Anmeldung, die nur mit Wohnung funktioniert. Da beißt sich doch die Katze in den Schwanz 🙈. Daher 'the famous Anmeldung' 😉
@@fraeuleinsommer75 we go into detail here: www.simplegermany.com/anmeldung-germany/. We will make sure to also do a video on the Anmeldung in the future 😊
I moved to Germany in April month and I started my stay on the sublet, I got the ARD letter and when I checked with the sublet owner about radio tax, he didn't get any letter ever and was not paying since he started. Now, I am moving to my permanent house in july. Now my question is - from when do I need to pay the radio tax?from April or July ?
Hello, thank you for explnation, I also read your blog about this topic, but I still don't understand the meaning of: "Unlike other services in Germany, you cannot pay for the radio tax monthly. You can choose to pay for it in the following frequency: 1. In the middle of the month, every three months (default frequency) 2. Prepay for three months - at the beginning of a quarter" A quarter is equal to 3 months, so what is the difference? And by saying "in the middle of the month", which month is that mean? Also, I have got 2 numbers 1. Beitragsnumber, 9 digit number 2. Aktenzeichen, 10 digit number which number should I include when I pay for Tv tax? Thanks in advance
What we mean is that the standard payment rythm is every 3 months and not every month. So for us for example our payment dates are 15.05. then 15.08. and so on. You will receive a letter informing you about your payment dates. It's easiest if you just give them a direct debit order. Hope this helps 😊
In every country there is broadcast, like in China CCTV or Russia RT. And every citizin pays it. The difference is how: Directly through taxes which is the case in more authoritarian countries like China or Russia or through a public fee in mostly demoratic countries for which probably the BBC in Great Britain was the leading example for. Consequently, the main difference is the funding which has great implications for the independency or dependency on the government for the press in a certain country. Generally speaking, public broadcasting is allowed to criticise the own government and state owned like in China not. So, public broadcasting has a very important function in Democracy: Revealing and exposing bad devlopmemts in society and politics. For example the recent DW documentary about the failure of Wirecard would not be broadcast in China or Russia because they think it would undermine the reputation of their country and their clean propaganda effort. I am not saying public broadcast has no bias in certain fields but surely it's more independent than state-owned. So, foreigners who come here should realize that probably in their country they also have to pay for broadcast but here it just more obvious because it is a seperate fee.
Do a video about having to pay for things that are free in the U.S.A. like public restrooms. We Americans are spoiled in that way that if we have to " go around the corner" 😉😁 we don't have to pay and toilet paper is even provided. 😄 Our water at restaurants is free too. Some places we get free parking for our cars ! Free refills of soda at some restaurants too. 😁 So, are there anything free in Germany that's not free in the U.S.A. ? Our apartments come with stoves and refrigerators and rent includes water and garbage and where I live I only pay rent not electricity or water or garbage and before COVID we had free Wi-Fi too . Having to pay for everything would be a culture shock for me. 😄
Well, toilets. This is actually very American. It is a privat toilet and the owner is free to charge. Capitalism in the American way as it's best. Your water in restaurants is not free. You just have to pay it afterwards by tipping. In Germany staff gets payd including insurance. That's why you have to pay water. Yes, also in Germany there is free parking. And free WiFi. Well your appartments include water and garbage. Well, yes, what is the point? You just pay it together with your rent. Or do you really think, that your landlord has a heart and pays this for you from his own pocket? Same with refrigerator. You just paying it with the rent, and in the end, you paid more for it than just buying it yourself. Do you really are so naive that you think you get this all for fee? The costs are just hidden somewhere. Rent, tipping or whatever. But if we talk about free things, even if hidden costs, think about this: free health care. And back to public broadcast, we have independent broadcast, that is what we are paying for. You have not. Well, toilets, they also put the costs somewhere into the calculation. It is astonishing, how easy you Americans can be fooled. Just because someone didn't writes it down but hides the costs somewhere by summing it up, you belive you get it for free.
@@mijp Maybe I should make a video for you where I walk in a star bucks and ask for water and get it for free. You Germans pay rent too so you are cheaper cost than us having to purchase your own stove and refrigerator and then move it around where ever you move next ? What a hassle ! I hear your electric bills are higher cost than ours and your gasoline for cars is super high ! Restrooms ? Where is the hidden cost for that ? I go to Walmart or a park or a Starbucks even a grocery store has free restrooms and I don't have to make a purchase and I get to use the restroom and even public library has free restrooms and no hidden cost because I dont pay. I even own a t.v. and by law stations have to broadcast into the airwaves and my t.v. antenna picks it up and no stupid license I'm watching for free on my free electricity. I have free internet on my free phone Im on right now replying to you ! Google Obama phones and learn about that and my rent is $50.00 I don't know what that is in Euros but I bet that's not much. 😄 I'm a veteran and H.U.D. pays the majority of my rent and that's not the T.V. police. As for doctor and medical I go to the V.A. and pay nothing and if I need pills or any thing medical they mail it to my door . 🇺🇸 😄 If the electric company raises it's rates my rent doesn't go up right away so I rather not have to bother with those things like big stoves and refrigerators and in fact when I moved in here where I live now they even provided a brand new bed for me .😄 My food is even covered by SNAP where I get around $230.00 on a debit card I can even use that at Walmart. 😉 Only in America !! 🇺🇸
@@Vonkater well, I get 3000Euro on my debit Card, what's your point? You are privileged as a veteran but that's not the US average. But that is not all where you are stupid. For example, Wallmart has facility costs. Do you really think, these costs are not calculated on all products? In this I also wonder. With buying at Walmart you pay for others peeing. That is the same as paying health insurance for others medicine. 😂
@@mijp so, you are saying merchandise in a German Walmart is cheaper because you pay to use the restrooms ? And you call me stupid ? 😆 You all pay higher taxes so what's your point ? Someone is paying for your Euro card that you did not explain the purpose of its use. I think this may be just for COVID lock down . None of the things I told you about were COVID related except we do get a bit more on the debit for food because of COVID. Yes when it comes to stimulus checks we only received one $1200. Check another for $600. And in this month we got $1400 . Our politicians do tend to be a bit stingy with our money and generous with corporate America and the military industrial complex. We spend more on our military than the other top ten countries combined ! I think we even have a few bases in Germany. 😊 America is always near a potential battle ground or sea or air and we even have a space force so yea we even go there. 😆 🇺🇸😀☝️ Number 1.😁
Please, please, no more videos about paid restrooms, no free refill in restaurants and sparkling water in Germany! YT is full of those! btw: Enjoy your free water with your meal in the US and learn that this is tap water, which sometimes tastes like chlorine as if it came right out of a swimming pool.
Hi ,I have a question and a suggestion that I hope you'll take into consideration 1- Do international students must pay it ? 2- please if there are any infos concerning living in Germany please do cover infos about students as well.
Hey Anouar, thanks a lot for your feedback! Regarding your questions: 1 - Yes you do - we go more into detail here: www.simplegermany.com/radio-tax-germany/#Do_You_Have_To_Pay_Radio_Tax_As_A_Student_In_Germany 2 - Most things apply to students just like to employees - although, sometimes you get special rates as students :)
if you want to stay in Germany pay it, once you leave Germany no one will care if you did not pay it. This is not a tax and the police will not look for you
it is pure propaganda. if you know the structure and the person in charge, you know it is pure propaganda. less and less and less crital against politics. it is propaganda like in the 30s of the last century. this is nozt guessing it is knowing.
Yes, there are reforms needed and stuff, and it is not perfect, but i'm very glad we have this - it's lots and lots of Radio and TV Broadcasts (and their online outlets, that i mostly use) that provide cultural, political, scientific and social information at a very high standard and often far from the mainstream. The latter is IMO the key benefit, because privates don't work outside of the mainstream and often not even outside of pure "entertainment". So much stuff never had a chance to reach people without this system because simply the audience is too "special interest" or niche for much of that stuff. And i like their neutrality and unbiased approach - unbiased not only towards "politcal" views but on economic views and especially economic constraints. For entertainment i watch Netflix & co, but for science, politics and economics/social topics i have the "ÖR"s from ARD/ZDF to 3SAT, arte and Deutschlandfunk. I wouldn't know what to do without Terra X, the cooperations with the BBC documentations and arte on mediathek or without the culture radio stations or Deutschlandfunk when i drive around. I can't remeber how many years ago i watched a private TV broadcaster like SAT1 or Pro7 the last time. Must be more than a decade easily.
Fully agree! The most seen and most well respected news broadcast since ages is the "Tagesschau", which is broadcast by ARD. The news shows from the commercial channels are crap: They consist of gossip, celebrity talk and some sports.
@@heinzk023 Also programmes like Auslandsjournal or Panorama and the foreign correspondents, political satire! Not just sensationalist news intended to spread fear like in the US. Oh and the Commercials 🙈
I think if German public broadcasting needs funding, it should be pulled from income taxes that are currently being paid and not added as a separate tax. Or self funded through advertising revenue.
If you are planning to stay in Germany pay it, as the video says this is not a "tax" is a contribution so no one will o to jail even if you don't pay it for 10 years. If you are staying some months or a couple of years don't pay it! you will never have troubles
Pls dont 4get to mention, that GEZ is not government based and also by german law not allowed, becouse the german law states, that you only have to pay if you made by yourself and not threw a third partie a contract like this GEZ.
Thanks. Very good and informative..... A situation like the US where there is the msnbc, cnn and Fox bubble i do not want... So if the 70 € keeps this away... Good invention.
Thank you for such a good explanation! One more question: How can I unregister my wife from this tax? We live in the same apartment, and I already pay this TV tax. However, we still receive letters asking her to pay the tax.
Totally. You only need to pay per household. More info on our guide: www.simplegermany.com/radio-tax-germany/#What_If_Someone_In_My_Household_Is_Already_Paying_The_Rundfunkbeitrag
Another Channel that is financed by that fee is the “Deutsche Welle“. It has a radio program, an app and a lot of RU-vid videos and is broadcasted in about 30 languages. It covers the news and also basic information about German politics, policy and polity. It is specially made for interested people outside of and expats in Germany. Although it's a good news channel for Germans too.
Hi Maren, thanks for your input 😊. However, it is actually a misconception. Deutsche Welle is not funded by the Rundfunkbeitrag, but instead financed directly by the government through tax money, since its purpose is to be broadcasted mainly outside of Germany. www.dw.com/de/wer-finanziert-die-dw/a-279073
@@simplegermany I probably have mixed it up with the “Deutschland Radio“ a long time ago. I really was sure, the DW was “gebührenfinanziert“. Many thanks for the correction, always could to get rid of mistakes.
@@simplegermanyJust for information. www.dw.com/de/wer-finanziert-die-dw/a-279073 Die DW ist seit der Neuordnung des Rundfunks als Folge der Deutschen Einheit die einzige verbliebene Rundfunkanstalt nach Bundesrecht. Sie wird - anders als die ARD-Landesrundfunkanstalten, das DeutschlandRadio und das ZDF - nicht durch den Rundfunkbeitrag finanziert, sondern aus Steuermitteln des Bundes. Zuständig ist die Bundesbeauftragte für Kultur und Medien. Darüber hinaus kann die DW in begrenztem Umfang Werbezeiten anbieten.
@@simplegermany In the UK, the TV Licence costs €182 Euro per year but over 75s can get an exemption plus if you don't watch live TV or just use your TV to watch DVDs or play games on it, then you do not need a TV Licence, I just lie and I never buy one.
What do you do when you move? For example, if I move from one apartment (with a roommate) to another apartment (with another roommate) ? How do I convey my new address to them?
You can use the forms as we describe in our guide: www.simplegermany.com/radio-tax-germany/#What_If_Someone_In_My_Household_Is_Already_Paying_The_Rundfunkbeitrag
I just found this channel and I really love all the videos and I have a question I haved forgot to paid it sometimes will that affect my Schufa score? 👍🏾
@@simplegermany i paid them as soon as I get the post that I have to pay I normally paid in every three months but I forgot sometimes😊by the way thank you for the reply
Question, what if you don't have TV and radio, do you still need to pay? Can I use this to ask for an exemption to pay this tax? growing up I am used to not having TV and radio, and I don't see that changing soon.
Hi! I filled in the unregistration form but I didnt get any receipt or certificate of it. Do you know how can I check if I am actually unregistered? Please help! Thanks a lot
Thank your for this informative video. Today I received the letter to pay. However I am staying in an Airbnb lo,g stay for 03 months so the owner accepted to fill out the form for my Anmeldung. How do I explain to them that I am staying in an Airbnb and I figure that it is already paid by the owner. Thank you
You can follow the process described on our website: www.simplegermany.com/radio-tax-germany/#What_If_Someone_In_My_Household_Is_Already_Paying_The_Rundfunkbeitrag
Planning to move with my wife and soon to be a new born at Frankfurt all 3 of us need to pay ? if one 1 us then how other 2 will inform the agency that it's already paid by one of us? I have my own flat in Prague (Czechia) and already paying Tv and Radio fees can I get exemption ?
You need to pay per household, not per people. It doesn’t matter if you pay somewhere else. If you live in Germany you have to pay the German one. You can find more information on how to inform the agency that both of you are paying under one house: www.simplegermany.com/radio-tax-germany/
Hi guys you are doing the great job. I have a question for you. I have forget to pay tv tax which was due in 1st october. And sent me a bill in september that i ve to pay by 1st of october, but the tv tax is for from june ti december. I can pay them now or i will for any other letter from them.
If a married couple move to a new address, does it mean only one needs to register and pay? And the second person still have to register but need to inform someone else is paying? Basically both have to respond to this broadcast license fees/letters?
If you both get a letter, yes you should both respond. One ticks the box, yes I will be paying and the other ticks the box, my spouse is already paying and adds the name and contract number.
That is a lot of money to give to something that I will receive absolutely no benefit from, they absolutely should not be calling it a "fee" it's not a fee, it's a tax.
Funny how for some reason something looks incredibly stupid in Germany to the point that I feel stupid for not understanding, this is certainly one of that lol. I just received my letter 🤣🤣
Yes, they do. You can often find them by searching the channel + Mediathek (media library). Here are the examples of ARD and ZDF: www.ardmediathek.de/ and www.zdf.de/
TV, yes sort of (at least thats what i know, aka i dont know if they send live programs). The TV stations have internet sites where they let you watch some of their content - but these sites are poop. If you are interested in german TV content, get a program called "mediathekview". It has a list of all available content, and you can download whats of interest to you.
@@nomirrors3552 we can't tell you about the exact distribution of the money, but yes the online outlets also fall under the funding of the license fee.
You should also mention the controversy about some of these public TV hosts who are multimillionaires, no one that doesn't want to watch or hear the rundfunk propaganda should be forced to pay it. Zwangsgebühr.
What a scam. These German Public Broadcasting channels also have advertisements from private industry. So much for being 'unbiased' and independent of influence. Hahaha!!!
We have that in Austria too, but the difference is that you have to pay it when you - own - a Radio-set or a TV-set. Well nowadays with those smart phones you have a built in radio set and you can watch TV with it anyway so basically everyone has to pay unless you don´t have any of those. We also have exceptions for people who officially live in minimum subsitence level by getting govermental social benefits and for certain invalids.
That's the main reason why they changed the calculation basis in Germany: Every PC, tablet and smartphone is able to receive TV broadcast nowadays. Back in the days when you only had to pay if you own a TV, people often had some blanket at hand in case the "GEZ" guy rings the doorbell, so that they can quickly hide their TV :-)
Hello, If somebody relocate to Germany for long term and starting living in hotel for initial 3 months while searching apartment for family and he does the city registration during hotel stay (in initial 3 months) so is he liable to pay radio tax for initial 3 months during hotel stay. Please advise
You cannot register with a hotel address. To do the Anmeldung you need a paper from the landlord certifying that you live there (Wohnungsgeberbestätigung), which a hotel will not give you. We go further into detail in our video ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-ysXo7MV2zko.htmlsi=xgk_jOb_cwch0UXx and blog post www.simplegermany.com/anmeldung-germany/
@@simplegermany Thanks for quick response. I shared the practical scenario and every service apartment hotel gives you WG doc if someone books and stays for 30 days , it's my experience . So I arrived in Munich on the 30-may and did KVR on 02-jun and stayed in the same hotel until 31-aug and got an apartment possession on 01-sep. But I keep receiving the radio tax doc and re- registered with new apartment address and now received the latest radio tax doc saying as record you are registered since May so please advise to respond on it.
Ah ok, thanks for clarifying. Yes, you should pay the broadcasting fee from the date you get the letter from them, which happens shortly after the Anmeldung. You can always contact them directly and ask. We’re no experts 😉
@@simplegermany Danke, any plans to do a video about applying for a visa for Germany? Hope you are safe? Really enjoy watching your content, keep up the awesome work.
Yes, we are luckily safe and fine. The visa situation is very individual, as it depends highly on your country of origin and the purpose of you relocating to Germany, so it is hard to wrap it all in one video.
@@simplegermany Glad you are safe. You mentioned in one of your videos that you have a South African friend, maybe I could pick their brain on instagram - instagram.com/tiro_sauls_photography/
It's OK for me to pay for content. I do it for print, for music, for streaming and internet media. But I don't like to have to pay GEZ for content I rarely consum. It is an outdated system from a time long gone, for a system that has lost the connection to their users. Wait another 10 - 20 years, and the audience for ARD, ZDF and DLF will have died away. Another story, you would expect that the german public tv has a neutral political standpoint, but no, it's biased toward the green party. Sometimes, they don't even try to hide their admiration. This system has to radically change or it will go down the drain.
If you take into account that maybe, in the next Bundestag election, the Green Party could be the leading one, then you can also say that ARD and ZDF are biased towards the political mainstream. Then again, you can argrue that they are the ones that dictate the political mainstream, so it's a matter of what's the cause and what's the effect. I am much more comfortable with ARD and ZDF as they are today, then some oligarch filling the gap if ARD and ZDF weren't there, who only follows his own agenda. If you believe that this system will go down the drain, then you won't have to be anxious about their political bias, if there is any.
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