Parking fees; payment

Parking meters and parking ticket machines should primarily be installed where there is insufficient parking space and it is therefore necessary to ensure that as many vehicles as possible can park one after the other for as short a precisely limited time as possible. In this way, parking space management makes it easier for individual road users to find a parking space even when the parking situation is tight.

The Federal Road Traffic Act authorises the state governments to issue corresponding fee regulations, so-called parking fee regulations. In Bavaria, the authorisation to issue the ordinances has been delegated to the local (municipalities) and lower road traffic authorities (district administrations, independent municipalities and large district towns).

These parking fee regulations apply to parking on marked public roads and squares. Parking charges may not exceed €0.50 per half hour or part thereof, or €1.30 in areas with particular parking pressure.

From 1 April 2025, all cars with an "E" at the end of their number plate will also be able to park free of charge for up to three hours in all public car parks in Bavaria. The exemption from charges only applies to public car parks (where parking space management has been ordered in accordance with the Road Traffic Regulations). The exemption from charges for electric vehicles does not apply to private car parks. These can be parking spaces with a barrier or multi-storey car parks where you have to take a ticket when entering. If in doubt as to whether a parking fee exemption applies, it is essential to check the local parking conditions notice. It is also essential to observe the maximum permitted parking time. This may be less than three hours and is not invalidated by the exemption from parking charges.

In areas where there is no public use under road law (e.g. private car parks), (higher) civil law charges can be levied on the basis of private law regulations.