The cheapest legal advice you will ever take is a contract review before signing. Once the contract is signed, every clause you didn’t notice becomes a problem you have to live with — and German contracts are dense with clauses that don’t exist in many other jurisdictions.
The seven clauses we always look at
- Probation (Probezeit). Most contracts have a 6-month probation with 2-week notice. Always confirm the maximum length and whether the notice will increase post-probation.
- Notice period (Kündigungsfrist). The statutory minimum is 4 weeks. Many German contracts lengthen the employee’s notice substantially after a few years’ service. Long notice protects you from sudden dismissal but constrains your ability to leave for a new role.
- Non-compete (nachvertragliches Wettbewerbsverbot). A post-employment non-compete is only enforceable in Germany if (a) it is in writing, (b) it lasts no more than two years, (c) it is limited in geographic/subject-matter scope, and (d) it pays you at least 50% of your last salary throughout. Many drafted clauses fail one of these requirements — and an invalid clause is no clause at all, but the absence of a valid clause sometimes also means you can be sued under general competition law.
- Bonus. Look for clauses that condition payment on employment on a specific date, that label the bonus “fully discretionary”, or that allow the employer to change the formula. All can be negotiated.
- Overtime. A blanket “all overtime included” clause is often invalid (see our article on overtime). A capped version (“up to X hours per month”) is enforceable. Push back where the cap is unreasonable.
- IP assignment and inventions. Standard clauses claim the employer’s right to all work-related IP. The Arbeitnehmererfindungsgesetz (German Employee Inventions Act) governs invention compensation; some clauses try to contract out of it improperly.
- Confidentiality and social-media clauses. Lifetime catch-all confidentiality is usually invalid as overbroad. Social-media clauses that restrict private speech can also fail.
Three smaller items that frequently matter
- Place of work. A specific city versus a generic “Germany / wherever the employer directs” can determine whether a future relocation order is enforceable.
- Working time. Hours per week, distribution of hours, and reference to a Tarifvertrag. Watch for invalid catch-all “the employer can adjust working hours at any time”.
- Exclusion period (Ausschlussfrist). Usually a three-months / three-months structure. Make sure the clause expressly carves out the statutory minimum wage — otherwise the clause is wholly invalid (a downside for the employer, an upside for you).
How a contract review works
Send us the contract as a PDF. We return a one-page summary of the clauses that matter most for you, a list of negotiation asks (ordered by priority and likely success), and revised wording for each. For a standard contract, this takes 24–48 hours.
What we deliver in a contract review
- A one-page executive summary in plain English: top three risks and top three negotiation asks.
- A clause-by-clause table: clause wording, our assessment (green/yellow/red), recommended counter-wording.
- If the contract is in German, an English translation of the clauses that matter most.
- A short call (15–30 minutes) to walk through the review with you and prepare you for the negotiation conversation.
Standard turnaround: 24–48 hours. Standard fee under RVG for a contract of typical complexity: €900–€1,500 plus VAT, depending on length and complexity.
What to push back on first
- Catch-all overtime clauses without a quantified cap — these are often invalid and easy to remove.
- Non-competes that are too broad or unpaid — usually negotiable down or out.
- Bonus clauses that condition payment on date-of-payment employment — push for accrual-based payment.
- Confidentiality terms that survive indefinitely without limitation — push for sensible time and subject-matter limits.
- Probation longer than 6 months — invalid; ask for the maximum permitted 6.