Your rights
Civil law
The German Protection Against Violence Act (GewSchG – Act to improve civil-law protection in the event of violent offenses and stalking and to facilitate departure from the marital home in the event of separation) reinforces your rights!
Upon your motivated request, the court can order the offender to desist from their stalking or actions:
  | entering the home of the victim of the stalking |
| stopping within a certain area around the home of the person (restraining order) |
| visiting certain other places at which the affected person is often present (for example their place of work) |
| contacting the affected person, whether in person or using technical means of communication |
| causing meetings with the victim |
Penal law
| In order to improve the penal-law protection of victims of stalking, the German Law on the Criminal Liability for Persistent Stalking introduced the § 238 on stalking into the German Criminal Code. The offense of stalking is now designated as serious, punishable offense and the offender can be punished with imprisonment. |
Aside from the criminal offense of stalking, there are also other criminal offenses that can play a role in stalking. Criminal-law-relevant offenses related to stalking include, among others:
| Trespassing – §123 StGB |
| Insulting – §185 StGB |
| Slander – §186 StGB |
| Libel – §187 StGB |
| Violation of the most private area of life through the taking of pictures – §201a StGB |
| Violation of the secrecy of correspondence – §202 StGB |
| Bodily harm – §223 StGB |
| Deprivation of liberty – §239 StGB |
| Coercion – §240 StGB |
| Threatening – §241 StGB (10) |