German court issues new ruling on when residents can avoid paying TV tax

A German court has issued a new ruling on whether residents can avoid paying the TV tax (Rundfunkbeitrag) if they object to the selection of programmes on offer.

New case sets precedent for paying Rundfunkbeitrag

A complaint filed by a woman in Bavaria has led a Federal Administrative Court to issue a precedent-setting ruling on whether residents can legally refuse to pay the Rundfunkbeitrag if they object to the programmes offered by public broadcasters.

All households and companies in Germany are obliged to pay the monthly 18,36 euro TV tax, which funds public broadcasters. Only certain groups are exempt from paying, such as those who receive unemployment benefits, or people who have vision or hearing impairments.

The woman refused to pay the tax, complaining that public broadcasters ARD, ZDF, and Deutschlandradio did not fulfil their broadcasting mandate because their programmes were biased and not well-balanced. According to her complaint, the lack of diverse opinions represented a “general structural failure of public broadcasting", Tagesschau reported. 

Until now, the court had rejected such cases on the basis that residents can file complaints to the broadcasting council (Rundfunkrat). Now, the Federal Administrative Court in Leipzig, one of Germany's five supreme courts, has clarified whether this was a legally sound response.

Residents can refuse to pay TV tax, but proving their case is very hard 

The court ruled there is a legal basis for residents refusing to pay the tax if public broadcasters don’t fulfil their broadcasting mandate and obligation to broadcast a diversity of opinions.

However, residents cannot refuse to pay the tax simply because they disagree with a few programmes. It would be very difficult for complainants to prove their case successfully. 

Refusing to pay the tax would only be legally justified if they could prove that public broadcasters' programmes across the TV, radio and internet showed “evident and regular deficits in terms of diversity of opinion over a longer period of time.”

A successful case would also have to show a “large discrepancy between the tax burden and programme quality”, not just in individual programmes, but across all programmes.

The court based its decision on the German constitution, also known as the Basic Law or Grundgesetz. Broadcasters can use the Grundgesetz to invoke their fundamental right to freedom of broadcasting, which limits excessive control by German courts.

If the woman wishes to continue with her case, she must now follow the route laid out by the court in Leipzig.