Heizkostenabrechnung: A Landlord's Guide for Germany (2026)

What is the Heizkostenabrechnung?

The Heizkostenabrechnung (heating-cost statement) is the yearly account of heating and hot-water costs by which you allocate those costs to your tenants. It is part of the Nebenkostenabrechnung (annual operating-cost statement) but follows extra rules of its own: the Heizkostenverordnung (HeizkostenV, the Heating Costs Ordinance). This makes billing by consumption mandatory — a pure allocation by living area is not permitted for central supply.

The key rule: 50–70% by consumption (§ 7 HeizkostenV)

For central heating and hot-water supply you must bill at least 50% and at most 70% of costs by metered consumption (verbrauchsabhängig). The remaining 30–50% you allocate by living or usable area (§ 7 HeizkostenV). You choose the ratio within that range — 70/30 is common.

Exception: in certain un-insulated older buildings with oil or gas central heating, § 7 (1) sentence 2 HeizkostenV mandates 70% by consumption; here there is no discretion.

Important: If you don't bill by consumption although it was possible — for example because no meters or Heizkostenverteiler (heat-cost allocators) are installed — the tenant may cut their share by 15% (§ 12 (1) HeizkostenV). This right is mandatory, arises automatically, and cannot be excluded in the Mietvertrag (tenancy agreement).

The 12-month deadline (§ 556 (3) BGB)

The Heizkostenabrechnung must reach the tenant no later than 12 months after the end of the accounting period (§ 556 (3) BGB). For a calendar-year period that means: the statement for 2025 must reach the tenant by 31 December 2026. Miss the deadline and you lose the right to a Nachzahlung (back-payment); a tenant's Guthaben (credit) still stands.

Step by step

1. Capture consumption — read the meters and Heizkostenverteiler at the end of the period, for each unit.
2. Compile total costs — only umlagefähige (apportionable) heating costs under § 7 BetrKV (see below).
3. Apply the Umlageschlüssel (allocation key) — 50–70% by consumption, the rest by area (§ 7 HeizkostenV).
4. Deduct the Vorauszahlungen — the monthly advance payments the tenant made.
5. Show the result — Nachzahlung or Guthaben, with a payment deadline.
6. Serve it on time — provably, within 12 months (§ 556 (3) BGB).

Consumption-based vs. area-based share

Share	Range (§ 7 HeizkostenV)	Allocated by
Verbrauchsabhängig (by consumption)	50–70%	metered consumption (meters, Heizkostenverteiler)
Flächenabhängig (basic costs)	30–50%	living or usable area

Umlagefähig vs. nicht umlagefähig

Apportionable (§ 7 BetrKV): fuel (gas, oil, district heating, pellets), operating electricity, regular maintenance and inspection of the system, chimney cleaning, and the reading, calibration and rental of the meters.

Not apportionable: repairs, replacing the boiler, modernisation (e.g. installing a heat pump), financing and administration costs.

The monthly consumption information (since 2022)

If the building has fernablesbar (remotely readable) meters, you must inform the tenant of their heating and hot-water consumption monthly since 1 January 2022 (unterjährige Verbrauchsinformation, interim consumption information; HeizkostenV amendment). The information states current consumption and compares it with the previous month, the same month last year, and an average comparable household. Agreements that purport to waive this duty are void.

Common mistakes

• Pure area-based billing instead of by consumption — triggers the 15% Kürzungsrecht (right to reduce)
• Choosing a share outside the 50–70% range
• Billing non-apportionable repair or replacement costs
• Missing the 12-month deadline
• Not providing the monthly consumption information where fernablesbar meters exist

With HausMaus it's easier

You upload the WEG-Jahresabrechnung (the property-management annual statement); HausMaus reads it, separates umlagefähige from non-apportionable costs, and allocates the heating costs by the stored Umlageschlüssel — by consumption and by area. You capture the meter readings directly in the app; if a reading is missing, HausMaus flags it. From § 556 BGB, BetrKV and HeizkostenV it produces a checkable statement for each tenant, with a Nachzahlung or Guthaben, which you approve before sending.

See pricing – 1 % of collected rent, free for tenants →