Domestic violence in Berlin: help, women's shelters, protection, and residence status
The German version of this page has been changed, this translation has not. Please rely on the German page.
In acute danger, call 110. The police can remove the perpetrator from the home.
- BIG Hotline Berlin: 030 611 03 00. Reachable around the clock, including weekends and holidays. Confidential, anonymous on request. Interpretation into other languages is arranged as needed. The hotline also connects you to shelter places.
- Hilfetelefon „Gewalt gegen Frauen" (helpline "Violence against women"): 116 016. Nationwide, free of charge, 365 days a year around the clock, anonymous. Counseling in many languages and in German Sign Language.
Frauenhaus (women's shelter): Berlin has seven women's shelters plus additional refuge apartments. Phone numbers are listed below in the specialist section. The BIG Hotline can arrange a placement.
Court protection: Under the Gewaltschutzgesetz (Protection Against Violence Act), the Familiengericht (family court) can, on your application, order for example that the perpetrator may not enter the home or may not approach you. You can file the application orally at the Rechtsantragstelle (legal application office) of the family court; you do not need a lawyer to do so.
Residence status: If your right of residence depends on your marriage to your partner, an independent right of residence may be possible in cases of domestic violence (§ 31 AufenthG). Talk to an advice center about this before making decisions.
This page is information, not legal advice.
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- In acute danger: call 110In an acute situation, call 110. You can also file a police report at any police station or via the Berlin police's online station (Internetwache).
- Call the BIG Hotline or the HilfetelefonBIG Hotline Berlin 030 611 03 00 (around the clock, confidential, anonymous on request) or Hilfetelefon 116 016 (free of charge, around the clock, anonymous). You do not have to give your name.
- Clarify a shelter placeThe BIG Hotline arranges contacts to shelter places. You can also call a Frauenhaus (women's shelter) directly (numbers in the specialist section).
- Apply for court protectionFile an application for a protection order with the Familiengericht (Amtsgericht Köpenick, Pankow, Schöneberg, or Kreuzberg), orally at the Rechtsantragstelle or in writing. Bring: ID or passport, a deliverable address for the perpetrator, the police case number, medical certificates and photos if available.
- Get your residence status clarified Keep evidence of the violence (medical certificates, police case numbers, photos).
- The stated 'three months' deadline for the grant of home use under the Gewaltschutzgesetz (§ 2 Abs. 3 GewSchG) depends on the circumstances: the claim also lapses (Nr. 1) if no further injury is to be feared, except in cases of a serious act, and (Nr. 3) where the perpetrator's interests predominate. Only a summary of the statutory wording is available; check it with an advice center.
- § 31 AufenthG concerns the spouse holding a residence permit for family reunification.
- § 31 Abs. 2 Satz 4 AufenthG: to prevent abuse, the extension can be refused if the spouse depends on benefits under SGB II or SGB XII for a reason within their own responsibility. § 31 Abs. 4 AufenthG (receipt of social benefits does not itself prevent extension) was only available in summary form; the exact wording needs checking.
- Costs and admission conditions of Berlin's women's shelters (cost coverage, residence status, residence obligation, data sharing with the immigration authority): no confirmed information is available for this. Ask the BIG Hotline or the shelter before admission.
- Residence obligation (Wohnsitzauflage): the national umbrella organization bff (Frauen gegen Gewalt) states in its FAQ (undated page) that women facing acute violence subject to a different residence obligation must file a redistribution application (Umverteilungsantrag), and that fleeing the perpetrator justifies a breach of the residence duty. The Berlin procedure for this: no confirmed information is available for this.
- Men and boys: according to the Berlin police, male victims are referred by the BIG Hotline to Opferhilfe Berlin e.V., tel. (030) 395 28 67.
- The BIG Hotline's shelter-placement service is documented as an offer; available places, waiting times, and admission criteria: no confirmed information is available for this.
In depth · Legal basis, figures and practice – for counsellors and professionals
Acute help
Emergency number 110: the Berlin police state to call "110 in an acute case". To file a report: at the nearest police station, via the Internetwache (online station), or via the emergency number. According to its own page, the police can issue an order barring the suspect from entering the home "for a maximum of 14 days" (§ 29a ASOG Berlin); the Senatsverwaltung (Senate Department) likewise states "a maximum of 14 days", "until a civil-law protection order is issued". A police citizen phone line (030) 4664-4664 is referenced only in an unconfirmed source; not confirmed on the police page itself.
BIG Hotline (BIG e.V.): 030 611 03 00, "reachable around the clock, including weekends and holidays"; the team "listens", assesses situations, and "connects callers to shelter places and other important help"; the offer is for women affected by domestic violence, relatives, supporters, and professionals; "confidential and anonymous on request"; "interpretation into other languages can be arranged as needed"; email [email protected]; chat counseling Wednesdays 3:30–5:30pm and Fridays 1:30–3:30pm via big-hotline.assisto.online. Cost: not stated in the source. BIG Koordinierung (coordination office): 030 6170 9100 (per the Senatsverwaltung).
Hilfetelefon „Gewalt gegen Frauen" (helpline "Violence against women", Bundesamt für Familie und zivilgesellschaftliche Aufgaben): 116 016; "365 days a year — around the clock"; free of charge; anonymous; languages per the page: Albanian, Arabic, Bulgarian, Chinese, English, French, Italian, Farsi/Dari, Kurdish (Kurmanji), Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Russian, Spanish, Turkish, Ukrainian, Vietnamese, and German Sign Language; topics include domestic violence, sexualized violence, stalking, human trafficking, forced marriage, digital violence; online counseling via email and chat (German only).
Further offers per the Senatsverwaltung: Frauenkrisentelefon (women's crisis line) 030 614 22 42; Hydra (counseling for sex workers) 030 611 00 23.
Women's shelters and refuge apartments (Senatsverwaltung, seven women's shelters)
- 2. Autonomes Frauenhaus – tel. 030 37 49 06 22
- Frauenhaus Hestia – tel. 030 559 35 31
- Frauenhaus Cocon – tel. 030 91 61 18 36
- Frauenhaus Caritas – tel. 030 851 10 18
- Frauenhaus Bora – tel. 030 986 43 32
- Interkulturelles Frauenhaus – tel. 030 8010 8050
- AWO Frauenhaus Berlin – tel. 030 50931 8513
Refuge apartments (seven facilities): Matilde, „Zufluchtswohnungen für Frauen" (refuge apartments for women), Paula Panke, Hestia (including Frauenort-Augusta; SMS for deaf women 0160 6663778), Flotte Lotte, Frauenzimmer, Offensiv91 (Treptow and Neukölln). Specialist advice centers: Frauenraum, Frauentreffpunkt, Frauenberatung Tara, Frauenberatung Bora, Interkulturelle Beratungsstelle. Opening hours, costs, and language offers are not given on the Senate page.
Gewaltschutzgesetz (Protection Against Violence Act, GewSchG)
§ 1 GewSchG: if someone has intentionally and unlawfully injured another person's body, health, or freedom, the court can, on application, order protective measures; per the available summary, these include among others a prohibition on entering the injured person's home or being present within a defined area; correspondingly for threats and unlawful, intentional stalking (including by means of remote communication). § 2 GewSchG: grant of use of a jointly used home (Abs. 1) where a shared household was set up on a lasting basis; time-limitation where the home is jointly owned or jointly rented (Abs. 2); where only the perpetrator holds the rights, "a maximum of six months", extendable by a further six months if suitable alternative housing has not been found; the claim is excluded, among other things, where no further injury is to be feared (except for serious acts), where written demand was not made in time within three months of the act, or where the perpetrator's interests predominate (Abs. 3); a reasonable usage fee is possible (Abs. 5); in the case of threats, home use can be granted to avoid undue hardship, especially where children live in the household (Abs. 6). Wording only available in summary form.
Procedure in Berlin (service.berlin.de, Senatsverwaltung): since 1 September 2009, the family courts have exclusive jurisdiction. Application orally at the Rechtsantragstelle (legal application office) or in writing; according to unconfirmed information, a lawyer is not required. Four family courts in Berlin; choice between the court at the place of the act, at the place of the shared home, or at the perpetrator's place of residence. Documents needed: application with a detailed account of the facts, a deliverable address for the perpetrator, ID card or passport, police case numbers and records, medical certificates and photos (if available). Fees: court fees based on the value in dispute, plus expenses and possible lawyer's fees; legal aid (Verfahrenskostenhilfe) can be applied for. Deadlines for filing the application: not explicitly stated. Courts: Amtsgericht Köpenick, Mandrellaplatz 6, 12555 Berlin, tel. (030) 90247-0; Amtsgericht Pankow, Kissingenstraße 5-6, 13189 Berlin, tel. (030) 90245-0 (also responsible for Mitte, Reinickendorf, and Prenzlauer Berg); Amtsgericht Schöneberg, Grunewaldstraße 66-67, 10823 Berlin, tel. (030) 90159-0 (also responsible for Steglitz-Zehlendorf, Schöneberg, Friedenau); Amtsgericht Kreuzberg, Hallesches Ufer 62, 10963 Berlin, tel. (030) 90175-0 (also responsible for Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg, Tempelhof, Charlottenburg, Lichtenberg, Neukölln, Spandau). Opening hours of the Rechtsantragstellen: not listed.
Right of residence upon separation: § 31 AufenthG
Under § 31 Abs. 1 Satz 1 AufenthG, if the marital cohabitation ends, the spouse's Aufenthaltserlaubnis (residence permit) "is extended for one year as an independent right of residence, independent of the purpose of family reunification", if (1) the marital cohabitation had lawfully existed in Germany for at least three years, or (2) the foreign spouse died while the cohabitation existed in Germany and, up to that point, held an Aufenthaltserlaubnis, a Niederlassungserlaubnis, or an Erlaubnis zum Daueraufenthalt–EU (with an exception where the extension could not be applied for in time for reasons beyond that person's control). Satz 1 does not apply where the extension or grant is excluded by a legal provision because of the purpose of stay, or by a condition under § 8 Abs. 2 (Satz 2). Under Abs. 2 Satz 1, the three-year requirement is waived "insofar as it is necessary to avoid a particular hardship, to allow the spouse to continue their stay". A particular hardship exists per Satz 2 in particular where the marriage is void or has been annulled due to minority, where returning would seriously impair protection-worthy interests, or where continuing the marital cohabitation is unreasonable because of impairment of protection-worthy interests; "this is to be assumed in particular where the spouse is a victim of domestic violence". Protection-worthy interests also include the welfare of a child living with the spouse in a family unit (Satz 3). Satz 4: extension can be refused if the spouse depends on benefits under SGB II or SGB XII for a reason within their own responsibility. For the Niederlassungserlaubnis under Abs. 3 and receipt of social benefits under Abs. 4, only a summary is available.
Not covered on this page
No confirmed information is available for this.
- What is “Domestic violence in Berlin” about?
- Are you being hit, threatened, or controlled at home? Here you'll find where to get help around the clock (110, BIG Hotline, Hilfetelefon), how a Frauenhaus (women's shelter) and the Gewaltschutzgesetz (Protection Against Violence Act) work, and what § 31 AufenthG means for your residence status.
- Which deadlines and figures matter?
- höchstens 14 Tage: Police order barring the suspect from entering the home and adjoining areas (§ 29a ASOG Berlin (laut Polizei Berlin und Senatsverwaltung))
- 3 Monate nach der Tat: Claim to be granted use of the shared home after an injury expires if use is not demanded in writing within three months of the act (note the exceptions in the statute) (§ 2 Abs. 3 Nr. 2 GewSchG)
- bis zu 6 Monate, um weitere 6 Monate verlängerbar: Duration of the grant of use of the home where only the perpetrator holds ownership or tenancy rights to it (extendable if suitable alternative housing has not been found) (§ 2 Abs. 2 GewSchG)
- 1 Jahr (Verlängerung um jeweils 1 Jahr): Independent right of residence of the spouse after the marital cohabitation ends; requires, among other things, three years of lawful marriage within Germany; in cases of particular hardship (including domestic violence), the three-year requirement does not apply (§ 31 Abs. 1 und 2 AufenthG)
- What should I do first?
- In acute danger: call 110: In an acute situation, call 110. You can also file a police report at any police station or via the Berlin police's online station (Internetwache).
- Call the BIG Hotline or the Hilfetelefon: BIG Hotline Berlin 030 611 03 00 (around the clock, confidential, anonymous on request) or Hilfetelefon 116 016 (free of charge, around the clock, anonymous). You do not have to give your name.
- Clarify a shelter place: The BIG Hotline arranges contacts to shelter places. You can also call a Frauenhaus (women's shelter) directly (numbers in the specialist section).
- What should I watch out for?
- The stated 'three months' deadline for the grant of home use under the Gewaltschutzgesetz (§ 2 Abs. 3 GewSchG) depends on the circumstances: the claim also lapses (Nr. 1) if no further injury is to be feared, except in cases of a serious act, and (Nr. 3) where the perpetrator's interests predominate. Only a summary of the statutory wording is available; check it with an advice center.
- § 31 AufenthG concerns the spouse holding a residence permit for family reunification.
- § 31 Abs. 2 Satz 4 AufenthG: to prevent abuse, the extension can be refused if the spouse depends on benefits under SGB II or SGB XII for a reason within their own responsibility. § 31 Abs. 4 AufenthG (receipt of social benefits does not itself prevent extension) was only available in summary form; the exact wording needs checking.
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