Germany Investigators

Privin Network provides private investigation services in Germany, connecting clients with our investigators and local partners, experienced in surveillance, background checks, infidelity cases, corporate due diligence, and locating missing persons. Private investigation is a legal, regulated business activity in Germany, and every case is scoped with German law in mind from the outset.

Our investigators and local partners cover North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany’s most populous state and its commercial and industrial center, well suited to corporate due-diligence and asset cases; Bavaria, centered around Munich and home to a large share of the country’s insurance and manufacturing industry, useful for employment and fraud investigations; and Saxony, where much of the caseload involves cities outside the major metro areas. Wherever your case is based, our investigators and local partners know the area.

Germany’s official criminal-record document is the Führungszeugnis (certificate of good conduct), issued by the Bundesamt für Justiz (Federal Office of Justice) in Bonn. It costs €13 and can only be requested by the person it concerns, either online or in person at a local Bürgeramt. Employers and third parties can’t request someone’s Führungszeugnis directly. Background information on someone in Germany typically comes from a combination of what the person discloses themselves, publicly available information, and what our local contacts can verify directly.

Germany does not license private investigation as a distinct profession. Whether a business needs a formal permit depends on what it actually does. Activities that amount to security or surveillance work can require a permit under Section 34a of the Gewerbeordnung (Trade Regulation Act). General detective work such as private-client surveillance, accident analysis, and business research typically only needs a standard business registration under Section 14 of the same law. There’s no mandatory state exam or central licensing authority for the profession itself.

Germany’s data protection framework, the Bundesdatenschutzgesetz (BDSG) alongside the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), has applied since May 25, 2018. Any investigative work involving personal data has to rely on one of the GDPR’s recognized legal bases, most often legitimate interest, and that interest has to be weighed against the privacy rights of the person being investigated. Recording someone’s private conversation without their knowledge is a criminal offense in Germany. Section 201 of the Criminal Code (StGB) makes it illegal to record or listen in on another person’s non-public spoken words without consent, punishable by up to three years in prison. Playing back an illegally made recording is a separate offense under the same section.

German divorce law has been no-fault since a 1976 reform. Section 1565 of the Civil Code (BGB) recognizes only one ground for divorce: the marriage has irretrievably broken down. Infidelity by itself isn’t a legal ground, though it can be treated as evidence that the marriage has failed. Custody is handled separately from any question of fault. Married parents share joint custody by default, and that doesn’t automatically change after a divorce.

Germany’s Criminal Code also treats several categories of computer crime as distinct offenses: unauthorized access to specially secured data (Section 202a), interception of non-public data transmissions (Section 202b), and manufacturing or distributing hacking tools (Section 202c, sometimes called the Hacker Paragraph). Each carries a penalty of up to two or three years in prison, which is relevant to any digital forensics or cybercrime matter involving Germany.

Hiring an investigator can be a stressful time, especially if your need arises from an unseen circumstance. When life brings uncertainty, Privin is able to help. With years of experience and a globe-spanning network of industry professionals, we look forward to hearing your needs, tailoring your case to meet those demands, and helping you move forward with confidence that someone is working on your behalf.

Below is a list of our most commonly requested services, but we are also able to handle more niche situations. Schedule a consultation with one of our agents today to get started on your personal action plan.