Container permit: when you need planning permission

“Do I need planning permission for a container?” is the question we are asked most often – and the only one to which there is no blanket answer. In Germany, building law is a matter for the federal states: there is not one law but sixteen. What is exempt from procedure in Bavaria may require a permit in North Rhine-Westphalia, and the pitch often matters more than the size of the container.

This page explains what the answer depends on, which three questions you should ask yourself first and where the binding information comes from. It is no substitute for legal advice – but it will ensure that you ask the building authority the right questions.

Under building law a container is usually a building

As soon as a container stands in one place for more than a short period, under building law it is as a rule deemed a structure – irrespective of whether it has a foundation, whether it could theoretically be driven away again or whether it is only meant to stand there “temporarily”. The fact that it is set down on its corners rather than built of masonry makes no difference to this.

This is the point at which most misunderstandings arise. “It is only standing there” is not an argument under building law. What is decisive is whether the structure is intended for stationary use.

Three questions decide the case

1. Where is the container to stand? – the most important question

The German Federal Building Code distinguishes two locations, and the difference is more serious than any figure for size:

Built-up area (§ 34 BauGB) – within the parts of a locality that are built up in a connected manner, that is, where residential or commercial development already exists. Here all federal states have a list of projects exempt from procedure, which may include smaller buildings without rooms for human occupancy.
Undeveloped outlying area (§ 35 BauGB) – everything outside that: open fields and meadows, forest edges, many plots on the edge of a locality. Here practically nothing is exempt from procedure, regardless of size. The outlying area is in principle to be kept free of development; only privileged projects are permissible, such as agricultural or forestry ones.

This is the most common expensive mistake: a container that could stand in a built-up area without any procedure at all can, on a meadow behind the village, become a case for a removal order. If you are unsure which category your plot falls into – your building authority knows, and the information is free of charge.

2. How is it used?

The state building regulations typically link exemption from procedure to three features. As soon as one of them applies, the rules become stricter:

Rooms for human occupancy – rooms intended for people to spend extended periods in. A storage container has none. An office, residential or sanitary container does.
Combustion appliances – heating, stove, gas-powered appliances.
Toilets and sanitary facilities – because these raise questions of drainage and connection to the mains.

A pure storage container is therefore the simplest case under building law. An office container with windows, heating and an electricity connection is not – there, requirements for daylight, escape routes and thermal insulation additionally come into play.

3. How long is it to stand there?

Site containers during ongoing construction work are treated differently from permanent installation: they are allocated to the approved construction site and are regularly covered separately in the state building regulations. When the construction work ends, so does this privileged status – the container then has to go or needs a basis of its own.

In the case of “temporary” installation over months or years, experience shows that the argument of provisionality does not help.

What “exempt from procedure” means – and what it does not

Exempt from procedure means: you do not have to go through an approval procedure. It expressly does not mean that no rules apply. Even a container exempt from procedure must comply with substantive building law – it is just that nobody checks it for you in advance. Breaches then often only come to light when a neighbour complains.

The following in particular still have to be observed:

Separation distances from the plot boundary and from neighbouring buildings.
Development plan – it may lay down building lines, building envelopes, roof shapes or types of use that rule out a container.
Local by-laws – in some municipalities, design by-laws even govern colour schemes and materials.
Listed-building protection – separate standards apply in protected ensembles.
Utility connections and drainage, as soon as water or waste water is involved.
Neighbour law – a matter of civil law, independent of public building law.

Which law applies to you

What governs the matter is the state building regulations of the federal state in which the container is to stand – not those of your place of residence and not ours. All states are based on the Model Building Regulations, but they differ from one another in detail, in particular on the thresholds for buildings exempt from procedure.

Federal state	Applicable law
Baden-Württemberg	Landesbauordnung (LBO)
Bavaria	Bayerische Bauordnung (BayBO)
Berlin	Bauordnung für Berlin (BauO Bln)
Brandenburg	Brandenburgische Bauordnung (BbgBO)
Bremen	Bremische Landesbauordnung (BremLBO)
Hamburg	Hamburgische Bauordnung (HBauO)
Hesse	Hessische Bauordnung (HBO)
Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania	Landesbauordnung M-V (LBauO M-V)
Lower Saxony	Niedersächsische Bauordnung (NBauO)
North Rhine-Westphalia	Bauordnung NRW (BauO NRW)
Rhineland-Palatinate	Landesbauordnung (LBauO)
Saarland	Landesbauordnung (LBO)
Saxony	Sächsische Bauordnung (SächsBO)
Saxony-Anhalt	Bauordnung Sachsen-Anhalt (BauO LSA)
Schleswig-Holstein	Landesbauordnung (LBO SH)
Thuringia	Thüringer Bauordnung (ThürBO)

Why there is no cubic-metre table here: the thresholds for buildings exempt from procedure differ considerably between the states, they are adjusted with every amendment of the state building regulations, and they additionally depend on whether the site is in a built-up or an outlying area and on how it is used. A figure given here that no longer holds in your federal state would be worse than no figure at all – in case of doubt you would build on it without a procedure, and the building inspectorate would see it differently. Your building inspectorate will tell you the current value in a few minutes.

The safe route: a preliminary planning enquiry

If you need certainty before you buy, the preliminary planning enquiry (Bauvoranfrage) is the right instrument. With it you clarify individual questions bindingly – for instance whether a use is permissible at this location at all – without already submitting a complete planning application. The preliminary ruling binds the authority for a certain period.

For most of our customers a simpler route is sufficient: a call to the building inspectorate of the municipality or the district. Have the following ready for it:

The exact address and, if available, the land parcel number of the pitch.
The external dimensions and the approximate volume of the container – you will find the figures in our overview of container dimensions.
The planned use, honestly described: storage, office, occupancy, living.
The planned duration of installation.
The question of whether the plot lies in a built-up or an outlying area and whether a development plan exists.

Frequently asked questions

Does a storage container in the garden need a permit?

That depends on the federal state, on the size and above all on whether the plot lies in a built-up or an outlying area. In a built-up area, smaller storage containers without rooms for human occupancy fall under the projects exempt from procedure in several states; in an outlying area they generally do not. The binding answer is the information given by your building inspectorate.

Does it make a difference whether the container has a foundation?

For the question of whether it is a structure, usually not. What is decisive is whether the structure is to be used in a stationary manner – not how it is founded. Under building law, a container on four concrete slabs is to be assessed no differently from one on a strip foundation.

Is a permit also required if the container is only to stand for a year?

A time limit does not automatically make a project exempt from procedure. It is above all site containers during ongoing, approved construction work that are privileged. “Temporary” installation over months or years is not covered by this.

What happens if I install one without the required permit?

The building inspectorate can prohibit the use and order removal; in addition, a fine may be imposed. The costs of removal are borne by the developer. That is why it pays to ask beforehand – it costs nothing.

Who is responsible – the municipality or the district?

The lower building inspectorate, located at the district authority, or in the case of independent cities at the city itself. Smaller municipalities refer you to the district office. A call to the town hall will clarify who is responsible for your address.

Will you advise me on this?

We are happy to tell you what we know from practice – which questions experience shows are asked and which dimensions and details the building authority needs. We may not and do not wish to provide legal advice; the authority is always the binding source.

Note: This text reflects the general framework and is no substitute for legal advice in an individual case. What governs the matter is the state building regulations applicable in each case, local by-laws and the information given by the competent building inspectorate. As at: August 2026.