Reclaiming your Kaution: when do you get it back? (2026)

What does "reclaiming your Kaution" mean?

When the tenancy ends, your claim to repayment of the Kaution (security deposit) arises. But it does not fall due on the day you hand back the keys: the landlord may first check whether any claims from the tenancy are still outstanding. This Prüffrist (review period) is, according to settled case law, usually 3 to 6 months — § 551 BGB names no fixed statutory deadline.

After that, the landlord must pay out the Kaution as a lump sum, including the interest accrued, minus only the legitimate counter-claims.

What does § 551 BGB regulate?

§ 551 BGB protects your Kaution on three points:

• Amount: The Kaution may not exceed three Nettokaltmieten (net cold rents) (§ 551 Abs. 1 BGB). The Nettokaltmiete is the rent without heating and operating costs.
• Instalments: You may pay the Kaution in three equal monthly instalments, the first at the start of the tenancy (§ 551 Abs. 2 BGB).
• Holding and interest: The landlord must hold the Kaution separately from their own assets and earning interest, customarily at the rate for savings deposits with three months' notice (§ 551 Abs. 3 BGB). The interest belongs to you.

What may the landlord deduct from the Kaution?

The landlord may only deduct something if they have a concrete, legitimate claim against you. This includes:

Legitimate deduction	Not a legitimate deduction
Unpaid, outstanding rent	Normale Abnutzung (worn carpets, small drill holes)
Owed Nebenkosten / back-payment from the statement	Walls yellowed through contractual use
Damage beyond normale Abnutzung	Flat-rate renovation charges with no legal basis
Schönheitsreparaturen (cosmetic repairs) genuinely owed and due	Schönheitsreparaturen agreed under an invalid clause

If the annual Betriebskostenabrechnung is still pending, the landlord may retain a reasonable portion of the Kaution until it is issued — but only up to a realistically expected back-payment. The clearly undisputed part must be paid out beforehand.

Important: The landlord may not deduct anything for normale Abnutzung. Traces of contractual use are already covered by the rent. Always insist that deductions be itemised and proven with receipts — you do not have to accept flat-rate claims.

How do I reclaim the Kaution step by step?

1. Wait out the Prüffrist. After moving out, give the landlord a reasonable period (usually 3–6 months), all the more so if a Betriebskostenabrechnung is still pending.
2. Demand it in writing. Request repayment in writing and set a concrete deadline, for example 14 days. State your bank details and refer to § 551 BGB.
3. Claim the interest too. Expressly demand the accrued interest as well — it forms part of the Kaution.
4. Act if nothing happens. If the landlord does not pay after the deadline passes, you can enforce the claim in court. Under §§ 195, 199 BGB the claim only becomes time-barred after three years, counted from the end of the year in which it fell due.

Common mistakes

• Insisting on payout too early. Before the Prüffrist passes and any pending statement is settled, the full claim is not yet due.
• Accepting flat-rate deductions. You only have to accept concretely proven claims, not "renovation, lump sum".
• Forgetting the interest. Interest accrued over the tenancy is often overlooked, but it belongs to you.
• Setting no deadline. A verbal request is not enough. Only a written demand with a deadline creates the basis for legal steps.
• Sleeping on the limitation period. Three years sounds like a lot but passes quickly — claim in good time.

With HausMaus it's simpler

HausMaus is free for tenants and keeps an eye on your Kaution. The app records the deposit amount and the individual instalments, watches the Prüffrist after you move out, and helps you reclaim your Kaution with interest under § 551 BGB. You can see at a glance how much you paid in and when the repayment claim falls due.