Attorney Elger-Günther standing at the meeting room window holding a case file, looking out.

Guide

Guide to criminal proceedings

Explanations of the questions that arise first in criminal proceedings: pre-trial detention, searches, penal orders, costs, interpretation. General information, not advice on an individual case.

Topics

InvestigationGoods fraud: what penalty you face after a report from an online saleWhat range § 263 StGB sets for goods fraud, where the difference from a civil dispute lies, what computer fraud means and what a repayment achieves.11 August 2026 · 9 minute read
Collateral consequencesConviction and reliability under the weapons law: what happens to the permitThe weapons authority decides about the permit, not the criminal court. Why the number of daily units counts under weapons law and what a revocation sets in motion.10 August 2026 · 10 minute read
BusinessAsset freezing order: why the account is blocked and which routes existAsset freezing order under § 111e StPO: why accounts are blocked and vehicles seized, what is confiscated, when third parties are affected and which remedies exist.9 August 2026 · 10 minute read
InvestigationLimitation of criminal offences: when an offence may no longer be prosecutedWhich periods § 78 StGB sets, when they begin, why any examination can interrupt them and why a period you have calculated yourself is worth little.8 August 2026 · 9 minute read
TrialCriminal record in Germany and the certificate of conductYou have a criminal record once the conviction is entered in the Bundeszentralregister. Whether it also shows in the certificate of conduct is another question.8 August 2026 · 8 minute read
BusinessSubsidy fraud: what penalty you face if details in a funding application were wrongWhat § 264 StGB sets for subsidy fraud, why gross negligence is punishable, what counts as a fact material to the subsidy and what applies during a review.7 August 2026 · 8 minute read
InvestigationForgery of documents: when is signing someone else's name a crime?Forgery under § 267 StGB turns on who appears to have issued a document, not on whether its contents are true. The penalties and the neighbouring offences.7 August 2026 · 8 minute read
InvestigationWithdrawing a report: why only the application for prosecution can be taken backWhy a criminal report cannot be taken back, which offences need an application for prosecution, how withdrawing one works and what applies to you as a witness afterwards.6 August 2026 · 10 minute read
InvestigationPre-trial detention in Germany: what family can doSomeone close to you is in pre-trial detention. What counts in the first hours, who is given information, and how review of detention and complaint against detention fit together.6 August 2026 · 8 minute read
TrafficCoercion in road traffic: what penalty tailgating and braking to obstruct carryWhat § 240 StGB sets for coercion in traffic, when a manoeuvre becomes an offence, where the regulatory offence ends and what happens to the driving licence.5 August 2026 · 9 minute read
TrafficHit and run in Germany: penalties and what counts nowDrove on after scraping a parked car in Germany? What § 142 StGB requires, the penalty range, what the 24 hours mean and why your licence is at stake.5 August 2026 · 8 minute read
InvestigationStalking under § 238 StGB: what penalty it carries and what protection the law providesWhat § 238 StGB sets for stalking, what the statute requires, why criminal and Gewaltschutz proceedings are separate, and what rights injured people have.4 August 2026 · 9 minute read
TrafficDUI in Germany: when do you get your licence back?After driving under the influence (DUI) in Germany: provisional withdrawal of the licence, the ban period under § 69a StGB, re-issue and the MPU.4 August 2026 · 8 minute read
Appeals and enforcementSummons to serve a sentence: which routes exist and what a clemency petition achievesDeferral by the enforcement authority, court decisions, release of the sentence remainder and the clemency procedure in Hamburg. Four routes, four addressees.3 August 2026 · 10 minute read
Proceedings for foreign nationalsAccused in Germany with no residence here: what § 132 StPO requiresSecurity and an agent for service under § 132 StPO: what is ordered if you have no address in Germany, and why time limits can run without you.3 August 2026 · 9 minute read
InvestigationAssault: what penalty you face if a report is made after a fightWhat penalty assault carries, when § 223 StGB turns into § 224 StGB, what self-defence requires and what part application for prosecution and offender and victim mediation play.2 August 2026 · 10 minute read
BusinessTax evasion in Germany: penalties and voluntary disclosureThe penalty range of § 370 AO, the bars to a voluntary disclosure under § 371 AO, the 25,000 euro threshold and the limitation periods in German tax criminal law.2 August 2026 · 7 minute read
InvestigationTrespass: what penalty applies and when entering another's premises is an offenceWhat § 123 StGB provides for trespass, when entering is unlawful, what applies in shops and restaurants, and the three month application for prosecution limit.1 August 2026 · 9 minute read
BusinessCustoms came to the business: when undeclared work becomes a criminal offenceUndeclared work in Germany: what the customs authorities may inspect, when § 266a StGB applies, and why the contribution demand turns out so high.1 August 2026 · 7 minute read
Appeals and enforcementCalculating the daily rate: how high a fine becomes and what applies if you cannot payHow § 40 StGB fixes the number and level of daily units, what payment relief exists, and how the default imprisonment of § 43 StGB can be averted by work.31 July 2026 · 9 minute read
CostsCourt-appointed defence lawyer in Germany: who pays?When a case of mandatory defence exists, how the appointment works, and why a court-appointed defence lawyer in Germany is not free of charge.31 July 2026 · 9 minute read
InvestigationFalse accusation: what to do when the report against you is wrongWhat § 164 StGB means by false accusation, why a counter-report does not end the case against you, and which steps in the investigation really help.30 July 2026 · 10 minute read
TrialVictim rights in German criminal proceedings: what the private accessory prosecution gives youPrivate accessory prosecution, access to the file, psychosocial support and compensation inside the criminal case: the rights German law gives a person harmed by an offence.30 July 2026 · 8 minute read
TrafficNegligent bodily injury after a road accident in Germany: what penalty appliesAfter an accident with injuries, post arrives from the police. What § 229 StGB provides, what is a duty at the scene, and what happens to the driving licence.29 July 2026 · 9 minute read
InvestigationCaught shoplifting in Germany: the penalty and what happens nextShoplifting is prosecuted as theft under § 242 StGB. What the store detective may do, how the case proceeds, and how the shop's flat fee is treated.29 July 2026 · 8 minute read
InvestigationExtortion with intimate images: what to do now and what penalty the law providesSecure the evidence instead of deleting it, report it to police, public prosecution office or Amtsgericht. Plus § 253 StGB and the rights of the injured person.28 July 2026 · 10 minute read
BusinessDelayed insolvency filing: when does a managing director commit an offence?Delay in filing for insolvency under § 15a InsO: when the filing period starts, how long it runs, what the penalty is, and which allegations usually come with it.28 July 2026 · 8 minute read
Appeals and enforcementObjection against a penalty order: two weeks, and what is possible afterwardsObjection against a penalty order: the time limit, how it can be limited or withdrawn, what happens if you miss the hearing, and why it can turn out worse.27 July 2026 · 9 minute read
InvestigationPolice search of your home in Germany: your rightsThe police are at the door with a search warrant. What you have to allow, what you are not obliged to do, and what matters after the search.27 July 2026 · 8 minute read
BusinessInvitation, gift, consultancy fee: where acceptance of a benefit and taking bribes beginThe Strafgesetzbuch names no value threshold. What counts is public official status, the link to official duties, and whether a benefit was agreed as consideration.26 July 2026 · 10 minute read
TrialHow a criminal trial works in Germany and which court hears the caseThe main hearing step by step, which court in Hamburg is competent, whether you have to attend, and which time limits run after the judgment.26 July 2026 · 9 minute read
Appeals and enforcementAppeal on fact and law or appeal on points of law in German criminal law: which time limit runs after the judgmentOne week runs after the judgment. What separates appeal on fact and law from appeal on points of law, when the period starts, what form the grounds need, and what a missed limit means.25 July 2026 · 9 minute read
InvestigationDiscontinuation under § 153a StPO: what consent meansWhat a discontinuation against a monetary condition under § 153a StPO is, which conditions are possible, and why your consent is a binding declaration.25 July 2026 · 7 minute read
InvestigationInsult in Germany: what penalty applies and where freedom of expression endsPenalties for insult, defamation and malicious defamation, value judgment against assertion of fact, the time limit for the application for prosecution, and the private prosecution.24 July 2026 · 9 minute read
DrugsDrug possession in Germany: where personal use ends and trafficking beginsDrug possession and penalties in Germany: what the BtMG and the KCanG say, which cannabis limits apply, and where possession turns into trafficking.24 July 2026 · 9 minute read
TrialSummoned as a witness in Germany: when you must attend and when a witness counsel helpsWho summons you decides whether you must attend. Whether you must testify is a second question. Rights, consequences of staying away, the witness counsel.23 July 2026 · 10 minute read
TrialSuspended sentence in Germany: conditions and revocationWhat a suspended sentence is in legal terms, which conditions and directions a court may order, and on what conditions the suspension of the sentence is revoked.23 July 2026 · 8 minute read
TrialOne word against another in German criminal proceedingsWhen only two accounts stand against each other: how the court assesses the evidence, what rights witnesses have, and when an expert opinion is considered.22 July 2026 · 8 minute read
InvestigationMy child has been reported to the police: how a juvenile case worksProceedings against a young person in Germany: the age limits, what the JGG provides instead of adult penalties, and when a youth custodial sentence is possible.21 July 2026 · 8 minute read
BusinessBilling fraud in healthcare: what is really at stakeBilling fraud is prosecuted as fraud. Who starts the investigation, why the audit comes first, and what it can mean for your licence.20 July 2026 · 7 minute read

Guide to criminal proceedings

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