Federal Administrative Court (BVerwG) confirms broadcasting license fee

Since 2013, the broadcasting license fee has been levied uniformly for each residential unit – irrespective of how many devices a household owns. Prior to this change, a broadcasting fee had to be paid per broadcasting reception device. The Federal Administrative Court (BVerwG) has now confirmed that the broadcasting license fee is constitutional.

Currently, the charge stands at EUR 17.50 per month. Exemption from the payment obligation is only provided for certain social reasons and in cases of objective impossibility of broadcast reception in the residential unit, but not on account of the lack of ownership of a reception device.

Some private individuals who claim to own no broadcasting devices and therefore feel treated unfairly consider this unconstitutional and have accordingly brought legal proceedings.

The court's decision

By judgment of 18.03.2016 – Az. 6 C 6.15 u.a. (Press release) the judges in Leipzig decided that the broadcasting license fee for private households, which has now existed for approximately three years, is levied constitutionally and thereby aligned themselves with the previous case law.

In the opinion of the BVerwG, television sets are present in well over 90 percent of private households. Furthermore, broadcasting and television programmes can now also be received via computers, smartphones and other new devices. Ultimately, it is no longer possible to determine who owns and uses a broadcasting device. For this reason, it is also not constitutionally required to provide for an exemption option in the absence of device ownership.

Conclusion

At least for private households, the lawfulness of the broadcasting license fee is established and can only be reviewed by way of a constitutional complaint.

Whether the lawfulness also applies to the broadcasting license fee that businesses must pay remained unconsidered here and will be dealt with separately at the BVerwG.