Housing & bureaucracy
Rundfunkbeitrag (GEZ)
The Rundfunkbeitrag is Germany's broadcasting fee of €18.36 per month, charged once per household regardless of whether you own a TV. Colloquially still called GEZ, it funds public broadcasters. BAföG recipients can apply for exemption; shared flats pay once and split the cost.
The Rundfunkbeitrag finances public broadcasters ARD, ZDF, and Deutschlandradio. The charge attaches to the dwelling, not the person or any device: one flat owes €18.36 per month even with no TV, radio, or interest in German television. The Beitragsservice (the successor of the GEZ) learns about new households automatically through Anmeldung data and writes to new registrants within weeks.
Exemptions and reductions exist for BAföG recipients, some other benefit recipients, and people with certain disabilities, granted on application with proof. Ignoring the letters does not work: unpaid fees become enforceable debt with late surcharges and can ultimately be collected like taxes.
What it means for working students
In a WG the fee exists once per flat: find out who already pays before responding to your own letter, then register the household once and split €18.36 among flatmates. Dorm rooms with their own entrance usually count as separate dwellings and pay separately, while rooms off a shared corridor often count as one. If you receive BAföG, file the exemption application immediately; it works only from application, not retroactively. When you leave Germany, cancel with your Abmeldebestätigung, otherwise the account keeps accruing.