New consumer credit rules in Germany from 20 November 2026: what changes for you

The legal basis is the Act transposing the EU Consumer Credit Directive (EU) 2023/2225 of 12 May 2026, published in the Federal Law Gazette 2026 I No. 139. The Bundestag passed it on 17 April 2026. Most changes to the German Civil Code (BGB), the Price Indication Ordinance (PAngV) and the Act against Unfair Competition (UWG) take effect on 20 November 2026. What counts is the day the contract is concluded: if you sign an instalment loan on 19 November, it falls under the old law (Art. 229 § 71 EGBGB). For existing overdraft facilities, some new rules apply from the cut-off date anyway.

Key points at a glance

• From 20 November 2026, the BGB credit rules also cover loans under 200 euros, interest-free financing and many buy now, pay later models.
• Lenders may only conclude a loan if repayment is likely. They may not use data from social networks.
• An instalment loan is generally void if its APR exceeds the market rate by 100 per cent or by 12 percentage points (§ 492 (9) BGB).
• For new contracts, the right of withdrawal expires no later than 12 months and 14 days after conclusion, provided you were correctly informed.
• Credit advertising must carry the warning “Achtung! Kreditaufnahme kostet Geld” (“Warning! Borrowing money costs money”).

Which loans do the new rules apply to?

The new rules apply to every general consumer loan (Allgemein-Verbraucherdarlehen) concluded from 20 November 2026, and also to financing that used to fall outside consumer credit law. The Federal Ministry of Justice names three groups: small loans up to 200 euros, interest-free and fee-free loans, and buy now, pay later models. Information duties, creditworthiness checks and the right of withdrawal now apply to them just as they do to a classic instalment loan.

When you pay in an online shop, it depends on how the offer is set up. § 506 BGB covers any deferred payment and any other financial accommodation granted by a business. Under § 506 (1) sentence 2 no. 5 BGB, the classic purchase on invoice remains exempt: the retailer itself, without a third-party lender in between, gives you up to 50 days after delivery free of charge. Debit cards with an interest-free deferral of no more than 40 days are also exempt (no. 4). If the shop brings in a payment provider as the lender, or if the deferral costs anything, the new protection rules apply.

Offer	Until now	From 20 Nov 2026
Instalment loan from €200	covered	covered, stricter rules
Loan under €200	exempt	covered
0% financing	mostly exempt	covered
Pay later via a third-party lender	mostly exempt	covered
Free purchase on invoice from the retailer, up to 50 days	exempt	still exempt

A survey by BaFin, Germany's financial supervisor, published in February 2026 shows how widespread pay later has become: 20 per cent of 18 to 60-year-olds use it when shopping online. 14 per cent of these users have at some point lost track of open bills and instalments, rising to 24 per cent among under-30s.

What changes in the creditworthiness assessment?

The credit check becomes stricter: under § 505a (1) BGB, the lender must assess creditworthiness thoroughly and may only conclude the contract if you are likely to pay your instalments as agreed. Until now it was enough that there were no significant doubts.

What data the lender may use is also new. For general consumer loans, § 505b BGB prohibits collecting special categories of personal data, such as health or religion. Information from social networks is ruled out; queries to credit bureaus such as Schufa remain allowed. If two people apply together, their joint ability to repay counts.

The score itself also becomes more transparent. From 20 November 2026, the new § 37a of the Federal Data Protection Act (BDSG), part of the same act, prohibits credit bureaus from using name, age, gender, address, account transactions or social network data for scores. On request, they must tell you the data and criteria used, how the most important criteria are weighted, what the score means, and which scores they created and for whom. On the previous law, the Federal Court of Justice ruled on 21 October 2026 that a right of access under Art. 15 GDPR requires the score to have been decisive for a specific disadvantage such as a loan rejection. If a rejection closely follows a score being passed on, this is presumed (case I ZR 227/25 and others).

If the lender declines, it must tell you without undue delay and refer you to debt advice where appropriate. If the decision is based on automated processing, you can demand under § 30 (6) of the Federal Data Protection Act (BDSG) that a person reviews it and explains the logic to you. What you can do after a rejection is covered in the guide Loan rejected. How credit bureau data affects your offer is explained in the guide Creditworthiness.

When is a loan interest rate usurious?

From 20 November 2026, the usury limit is written into the law. Under § 492 (9) BGB, a general consumer loan is void if the agreed APR is strikingly disproportionate to the market rate. That is generally the case if it exceeds the market rate by 100 per cent or by 12 percentage points. The law thus codifies the line the Federal Court of Justice (BGH) has drawn so far for unconscionable instalment loans.

Exceeding either threshold is enough. At low market rates, doubling therefore applies first; from a market rate of 12 per cent, the 12-point mark-up does:

Market APR	Limit	Relevant threshold
5%	10%	doubling
8%	16%	doubling
12%	24%	both equal
15%	27%	+12 points

If the contract is void, the related collateral is invalid as well. How the money paid out must then be returned follows the general rules. A consumer advice centre (Verbraucherzentrale) can help here. For comparing normal offers, the APR (Effektivzins) still matters, not the borrowing rate.

How long can you withdraw from a new loan?

The withdrawal period remains 14 days, but for new contracts it ends in any case after 12 months and 14 days, provided you were properly informed about your right of withdrawal (§ 356b (2) BGB). Until now, the period could stay open indefinitely for an instalment loan with missing mandatory information. For contracts from 20 November 2026, this “perpetual right of withdrawal” only exists if the withdrawal notice was missing or wrong.

The period only starts once you have received a copy of the contract. You can withdraw on paper or on another durable medium of your choice, for example by email. If you finance a purchase where the retailer grants a return period of more than 14 days, the loan's withdrawal period is extended until the end of that return period (§ 358 (2a) BGB). All details on when the period starts and the required form are in the guide Withdrawing from a loan.

Concluding the contract changes too. For an instalment loan, text form will be sufficient; a signature on paper is no longer required (§ 492 (1) BGB). A pre-ticked box does not count as consent. If a lender pays out money without your request and explicit consent, it has no claim against you as a result (§ 492 (8) BGB). Under § 492a BGB, making a loan conditional on buying other products is not allowed.

What changes for overdrafts and payment difficulties?

For overdraft facilities (Dispokredit), the new rules also apply to existing contracts. Art. 229 § 71 (2) EGBGB applies, among others, §§ 504, 504a and 505 BGB in their new version to open-ended existing contracts from 20 November 2026. Your bank must then inform you about your overdraft at least once a month. If it terminates or reduces the limit, it must tell you at least 30 days in advance (§ 504 (2) BGB). If you have used the terminated amount, it must offer you, before any enforcement, the option to repay it in twelve equal monthly instalments at the borrowing rate without extra costs.

If you have trouble paying an instalment loan, the new § 497a BGB obliges the lender to refer you to debt advice. Before enforcement, it should show forbearance where appropriate, for example by extending the term, deferring payments or waiving part of the debt. This gives you no right to a specific measure, but it does give you an argument in the conversation with your bank. Whether an instalment loan is cheaper than an overdraft is shown by the calculator Loan vs overdraft.

What rules apply to credit advertising in future?

From 20 November 2026, credit advertising must carry a clear warning. No. 23e of the annex to the UWG requires the wording “Achtung! Kreditaufnahme kostet Geld” (“Warning! Borrowing money costs money”) or an equivalent. Without it, the advertising is unfair.

Advertising that suggests a loan improves your financial situation, replaces savings or raises your standard of living is also prohibited. So is claiming that existing loans or entries in databases have little or no influence on how an application is assessed. Promises such as “loan despite Schufa” are therefore a clear warning sign. The Price Indication Ordinance still requires the net loan amount, the borrowing rate and the APR with a representative example that at least two thirds of contracts must reach (§ 17 PAngV).

What should you do before 20 November?

A loan is not more or less worthwhile just because it is concluded before or after the cut-off date. What matters is still the APR, the total amount and an instalment that fits your budget. These points help you assess it:

• Check the contract date: Concluded before 20 Nov 2026 means old law, afterwards new law. This mainly affects withdrawal and the credit check.
• Use pay later deliberately: Note open amounts and check whether a deferral costs fees or interest.
• Put the rate in context: If an offer is far above the market level, keep the limit in § 492 (9) BGB in mind.
• Read the advertising: If the warning is missing or “no Schufa” is promised, be careful.
• Watch your overdraft: From the cut-off date, the bank must inform you monthly and announce a termination 30 days in advance.

You can work out the cost of a specific offer with the loan cost calculator and compare offers in the loan comparison.