Dienstleistungen
Apply for a housing eligibility certificate
You need a housing eligibility certificate in order to move into a subsidised and regulated social housing flat. You must hand it over to the landlord when you move into a social housing flat. The housing eligibility certificate also applies to members of your household.
The housing eligibility certificate merely enables you to enter into a tenancy agreement for a social housing flat. It does not entitle you to a social housing flat.
Forms/Online Services
Responsible authority
- the local authority or town council of the place where you usually reside.
- if you do not normally reside in Baden-Württemberg: the local authority in which you intend to live
Details
Prerequisite
- You are looking for accommodation.
- You and the members of your household do not exceed the relevant income limit.
Annual income is calculated separately for each person in the household.
The following are included in the annual income, regardless of whether this income is taxable or tax-free:
- for employed work, gross annual earnings less tax-deductible income-related expenses
- for self-employment, including in agriculture and forestry or in a commercial enterprise, the tax-deductible profit
- in the case of letting and leasing, as well as investment income, the surplus of income over tax-deductible income-related expenses
- payments from pensions and retirement benefits, less tax-deductible income-related expenses
- tax-free income, for example, unemployment benefit, short-time working allowance, transitional allowance, insolvency allowance, integration assistance and benefits to secure a livelihood under Book Two of the Social Code – Basic Security for Jobseekers –
For single parents, the annual income must be reduced by the tax relief amount if their household includes at least one child for whom they are entitled to a tax allowance or child benefit.
Please note: In the case of statutory maintenance obligations, separation or divorce maintenance, as well as child maintenance:
- counted in full as income for the maintenance recipient
- for the person liable for maintenance, child maintenance up to 3,000 EUR per year per child and separation or divorce maintenance up to 6,000 EUR per year
.
To calculate the total household income, the annual incomes of the individual household members are added together.
Procedure
You must apply for the housing eligibility certificate from the relevant local authority.
Please usethe prescribed form. You can obtain this from the local authority. Depending on the services they offer, you may also be able to download it from the internet or submit your application online.
Tip: It is best to apply for the housing eligibility certificate in person. That way, you can also clarify straight away which documents you need to provide in your particular case.
Deadlines
None
Required documents
This varies depending on the individual case, but above all:
- Proof of income for all persons wishing to move into the property, for example
- payslips, including evidence of any special allowances
- latest income tax assessment or latest income tax return
- for the self-employed: the most recent net income statement
Costs
depending on the local authority’s regulations on administrative charges
Miscellaneous
None
Detailed information
Einkommensgrenzen des Förderprogramms Wohnungsbau BW 2022
Legal basis
Landeswohnraumförderungsgesetz (LWoFG):
- § 1 Anwendungsbereich, Zweck und Zielgruppen
- § 12 Einkommen
- § 15 Überlassung von Mietwohnraum
Einkommensteuergesetz (EStG):
- § 3 Nummer 2 Steuerfreie Einnahmen
- § 24 b Entlastungsbetrag für Alleinerziehende
- § 32 Absatz 6 Kinder, Freibeträge für Kinder
Release note
machine generated, based on the German release by: Ministerium für Landesentwicklung und Wohnen Baden-Württemberg, 02.09.2026

