Certificate of good conduct; application for a simple certificate of good conduct

The certificate of good conduct is an extract, in particular of criminal convictions, which you can apply for from the age of 14 at the local authority / registration office responsible for you (citizens' office) or via the online portal of the Federal Office of Justice (see "Online procedure").

If you request the certificate of good conduct for submission to an authority, it will be sent directly to the authority. However, as the applicant, you can be granted access to the certificate of good conduct on request.

You can apply for a simple certificate of good conduct in person, in writing or electronically.

• When applying in person at the municipality, you must present your passport or identity card.
• To apply electronically via the online portal of the Federal Office of Justice (see "Online procedure"), you will need either an ID card, an eID card with a domestic address or an electronic residence permit, each with the online ID function activated.
• If you apply in writing , your signature must be notarized by a seal-bearing authority. Public certification by a notary is also possible. You must also state the purpose for which the certificate of good conduct is to be used. Information on notarizations can be found under "Further links".

An application by an authorized representative is not possible.

• Completion of the 14th year of life
• In the case of legal incapacity, the application must be submitted by the legal representative, if applicable

• Informal application (with signature)

  This wizard helps you to create an informal letter if the responsible office does not provide an application form.

13,00 EUR

Fee exemption (see also under "Further links"): In the case of indigence (e.g. receipt of citizen's allowance, social assistance, child supplement according to § 6a of the Federal Child Benefit Act, BAföG or benefits according to the Asylum Seekers Benefits Act), the Federal Office of Justice can reduce the fee or waive the collection of costs upon application. If a certificate of good conduct is required for the exercise of voluntary care (§ 19 Para. 1, § 21 BtOG) or voluntary work that is carried out for a non-profit organization, for a public authority or as part of one of the services listed in § 32 Para. 4 No. 2 letter d EStG, there is no fee.

In the case of an electronic application, proof of the existence of a reason for the fee exemption must be provided electronically.

• § Section 30 Act on the Central Register and the Parental Register (Federal Central Register Act - BZRG)

• Digital administration - online ID card
• Information on certificates of good conduct - Federal Office of Justice
• Information on the ID card app

The following general explanations can be given on the certificate of good conduct:

• In addition to the Federal Central Criminal Register, convictions of offenders also appear in the certificate of good conduct, which any person over the age of 14 can apply for from their registration authority.
• However, there are a number of exceptions to the entry in the certificate of good conduct, e.g. the following:

• Provided that no other sentence is entered in the register, a conviction of up to 90 daily fines or up to three months imprisonment will not be entered in the criminal record (but will be entered in the central register, from which only certain authorities receive information).
• Juvenile sentences of up to 2 years are also not included if they are suspended on probation.

• There are also erasure periods for the certificate of good conduct; they are generally shorter than for the Federal Central Criminal Register (between 3 and 20 years, depending on the type of conviction).

approx. 2 to 3 weeks