Private loans, debt and banking letters in Germany
A private loan, a settlement, an instalment agreement and a payment demand need no set form in Germany; they are written down to be provable. The exception is the acknowledgement of debt (Schuldanerkenntnis) under § 781 of the Civil Code (BGB): it needs written form and the electronic form is excluded, so it is valid only on paper signed by the debtor's own hand, and an email, a scan or even a qualified electronic signature will not do. Only a merchant for whom it is a commercial transaction is exempt (§ 350 HGB). Any acknowledgement restarts the limitation period (§ 212(1) No. 1 BGB). It is enforceable without a judgment only as a notarial deed in which the debtor submits to enforcement (§ 794(1) No. 5 ZPO).
The documents are in German, and each has a page describing it in English. A private loan agreement with no repayment date falls due three months after notice (§ 488(3) BGB). A final demand puts a debtor who has not paid a due sum in default, and a date fixed by the calendar does so without one (§ 286 BGB); default interest is then five points above the base rate, or nine for payment claims where no consumer is involved (§ 288 BGB). The demand does not stop the limitation clock; service of a court payment order does (§ 204(1) No. 3 BGB). A settlement records what each side gives up (§ 779 BGB), an instalment agreement the instalments, and whoever pays can demand a receipt (§ 368 BGB). Credit from a business to a consumer falls under consumer-credit law, not these templates.
A current account can be closed at any time without notice unless a period of at most one month was agreed, and closing it may not cost anything (§ 675h BGB). A SEPA core direct debit can be reclaimed within eight weeks of the debit, with no reason given (§ 675x BGB; refund request); revoking the mandate is a letter to the payee and ends neither the contract nor the debt. An unauthorised payment, a debit without a mandate included, is refunded by the end of the business day after it is reported, which must happen without undue delay and within 13 months of the debit (§§ 675u and 676b BGB; refund letter). A complaint about payment services must be answered within 15 business days, exceptionally 35 (§ 62 ZAG); then comes the conciliation application to the body of the bank's group. A P-Konto, the account protected from garnishment, can be demanded at any time (§ 850k ZPO).
The documents
13 forms available to fill out or download.
Revoking a SEPA direct debit mandate (Germany)
A letter to the payee — a gym, insurer, club, mail-order shop or debt collector in Germany — revoking your SEPA direct debit mandate (formerly Einzugsermächtigung). It gives the mandate reference, the creditor identifier and your IBAN, forbids further debits from receipt, and says how payment continues: you will pay by transfer, the contract has ended, or you will pay from another account. Revoking the mandate ends neither the contract nor what you owe. If a debit still arrives, your bank refunds a SEPA core direct debit within eight weeks, no reason needed (§ 675x of the German Civil Code, BGB). In German.
Instalment payment agreement between individuals (Germany)
An agreement under German law in which a private creditor lets a debtor pay off an outstanding sum in monthly instalments — a private loan, a deposit or damage, for instance. It confirms the debt and sets the number, amount and due dates of the instalments, no interest while payments are on time, the whole balance falling due after two missed instalments, and default interest under § 288 of the German Civil Code (BGB). For private creditors only: where a business grants a consumer instalments, consumer-credit law may apply (§ 506 BGB). In German, to be signed by both.
Application to a bank ombudsman or conciliation body (Germany)
An application for conciliation when your German bank or Sparkasse has not resolved your complaint — to the Ombudsman of the private banks, the conciliation body of the savings banks' association (DSGV) or a regional one, the BVR's complaints office for cooperative banks, or the conciliation body at the Deutsche Bundesbank. It names the bank, the contract, your complaint and its outcome, sets out the dispute and the sum claimed, and makes the usual declarations. With the private banks' Ombudsman the procedure is free for consumers, and the decision binds the bank up to €10,000. In German.
Acknowledgement of debt (Germany)
A written acknowledgement under German law in which a debtor confirms owing a creditor a stated sum, with the reason for the debt, the due date or instalments, the creditor's account and an acceleration clause. It creates the duty to pay in its own right and restarts the limitation period. Important: it is valid only if printed on paper and signed by the debtor by hand — § 781 of the German Civil Code (BGB) excludes the electronic form, so an e-mail, a scan or any electronic version is void. In German.
Receipt for a payment (Germany)
A receipt under § 368 of the German Civil Code (BGB) in which the person paid confirms receiving money — in cash or by transfer, for instance for repaying a private loan, an instalment, a deposit or a private sale. With the sum in figures and words, the date, the method, the reason for the payment and whether the debt is now fully paid or what remains. The payer can demand a receipt on paying; in German, to be printed and signed by hand by the person receiving the money.
Out-of-court settlement of a money claim (Germany)
A settlement agreement under § 779 of the German Civil Code (BGB) in which a creditor and a debtor end a dispute over a money claim without going to court: the background, the settlement sum, payment in one sum or by instalments, what happens if a payment is missed (the rest falls due at once, or the original claim revives), the waiver of the rest, a full-and-final clause and costs. For disputes over unpaid invoices, loans, deposits or damage. In German, no set form — print, both sign, each keeps a copy.
Private loan agreement between individuals (Germany)
A loan agreement under German law for money lent between private individuals — friends, family or acquaintances. It sets out the amount, payment by bank transfer, the interest or an interest-free loan, repayment in one sum or in instalments, early repayment, default interest under § 288 of the German Civil Code (BGB) and the three months' notice of § 488 BGB where no date is fixed. For private lenders only: a business lending to a consumer falls under consumer-credit law. In German, no set form — print, both sign, each keeps a copy.
Request to convert an account into a garnishment-protected P-Konto (Germany)
A letter asking your German bank or Sparkasse to run your current account as a garnishment-protected account (Pfändungsschutzkonto, P-Konto) — possible at any time, even when the account is overdrawn or already garnished (§ 850k of the German Code of Civil Procedure, ZPO). The bank must switch at the latest from the fourth business day after the request, and protection applies retroactively if you ask within a month of the garnishment. It includes the assurance that you hold no other P-Konto and covers the certificate of higher amounts (§ 903 ZPO). Since 1 July 2026, €1,590 a month is protected; the figure changes every 1 July. In German.
Complaint to a bank or savings bank (Germany)
A written complaint to your German bank or savings bank (Sparkasse) — about a faulty transfer, a card payment, charges, a blocked account, a loan or an investment. It sets out what happened and the remedy you want, and sets the time to answer: 15 business days for payment services, 35 in exceptional cases (§ 62 of the German Payment Services Supervision Act, ZAG). Complaining to the bank first is also the precondition for the banks' conciliation schemes — the private banks' Ombudsman, the Sparkassen body, the cooperative banks' BVR or the Bundesbank's conciliation body (§ 14 VSBG). In German.
Notice closing a current account (Germany)
A letter to a German bank or savings bank (Sparkasse) closing your current account (Girokonto), whether you are leaving altogether or switching to a new bank. It gives the IBAN, the account holder and date of birth, the closing date you want and the account for the remaining balance, ends the linked cards, overdraft and online banking, and asks for written confirmation. Under § 675h of the German Civil Code (BGB) you may close the account at any time without notice, unless a notice period of at most one month was agreed, and closing is free. A choice covers switching through the statutory switching service (§§ 20 ff. ZKG). In German.
Asking your bank to refund a direct debit or cancel a standing order (Germany)
A letter to your German bank or Sparkasse to refund a direct debit, stop a debit that has been announced, refuse a payee's future debits, or cancel a standing order. A SEPA core direct debit can be reclaimed within eight weeks of the debit with no reason given (§ 675x of the German Civil Code, BGB), and a debit taken without a valid mandate up to 13 months later (§§ 675u, 676b BGB). A standing order or an announced debit can be revoked until the end of the business day before it is carried out (§ 675p BGB). With the payee, mandate reference, amount and date. In German.
Refund of an unauthorised payment or card chargeback — letter to your bank (Germany)
Your letter to your own bank in Germany when your account or card was charged without your consent — after card fraud or phishing, say. You dispute the transactions and demand the refund, which the bank must make by the end of the next business day at the latest (§ 675u of the German Civil Code, BGB). Report without delay and at most 13 months after the debit (§ 676b BGB). If you paid by card yourself but received nothing, the letter instead asks for a chargeback under the card scheme's rules. With the blocking date and the police report. In German.
Final demand for payment before a court payment order (Germany)
The last reminder to a debtor who has not paid, before you start the German court payment-order procedure (Mahnverfahren): the sum outstanding, the due date, default, default interest under § 288 of the German Civil Code (BGB) — five or nine points above the base rate, with the €40 flat fee only from business debtors — a final deadline, your account and notice of the payment order. Laid out as a German business letter (DIN 5008), in German, for private and business creditors. No set form; the answers below explain proof of receipt and the application that follows.