Rest periods in German law: the 11-hour rule explained

Die wichtigsten Fragen im Überblick

Which rest periods are required by law?

Under the Arbeitszeitgesetz (ArbZG, the German Working Hours Act), at least 11 hours of rest must lie between two working days.

How long must the rest period between two shifts be?

There must be 11 hours between the late shift and the early shift too – exceptions are only permitted in certain industries.

What exceptions allow a shortened rest period?

In areas such as care, transport or hospitality, the rest period may be shortened to 10 hours if it is compensated for within four weeks.

Does the commute count towards the rest period?

No, the commute is not part of the rest period. The rest period only begins once actual working hours have ended.

What happens if the 11 hours of rest are not observed?

That is a breach of the German Working Hours Act. Employers must make sure that rest periods are observed or compensated for.

What does “Ruhezeit” (rest period) mean in German employment law?

The rest period is the stretch of time between the end of work and the start of work the next day. During this time no work may be performed or ordered – it is there purely for rest and recovery.

The Arbeitszeitgesetz (ArbZG, the German Working Hours Act) sets out this protective framework in order to avoid health problems caused by overwork and to safeguard people's ability to work in the long term.

The legal basis: at least 11 hours of rest

Under § 5 ArbZG: employees must have at least 11 hours of rest after finishing their daily working hours.

This rule applies to almost all employees, whether they work in the office, in production or on shifts.

Example:

If the late shift ends at 10 pm, the earliest you may start the next day is 9 am.

Exceptions: when may the rest period be shorter?

In certain industries the daily rest period may be shortened by up to one hour – provided it is compensated for within four weeks.

This mainly affects:

hospitals and care facilities
transport operations (e.g. rail, bus, air)
agriculture and animal husbandry
hospitality and the hotel industry
broadcasting and media companies

Rest periods in the employment contract or collective agreement

Many employers also set out rest periods in the contract or in a collective agreement. That can mean internal rules are even stricter than the German Working Hours Act – 12 hours of rest, say, or additional rest days at the weekend. So it is always worth checking your employment contract or the works agreement.

A collective agreement or employment contract may never prescribe a shorter rest period than the statutory 11 hours.

Special cases: late, early and weekend shifts

Overlaps are especially common in shift work. The 11-hour rule applies between the late shift and the early shift as well. If shorter breaks are necessary, they must be approved under a collective agreement or by the authorities and compensated for with longer rest periods.

The same rules apply at the weekend as well: anyone working on a Saturday is still entitled to at least 11 hours of rest before the next shift starts.

Read here how rest periods are handled for on-call duty.

What if the rest period is not observed?

If an employee has less than 11 hours between shifts, the employer is in breach of the German Working Hours Act.

That can lead to fines and, where it happens repeatedly, can also be treated as a regulatory offence (Ordnungswidrigkeit). For employees it means: you may insist that these rest periods are granted or compensated for afterwards.

You can find more on working time violations here.

Rest period after 12 hours of work

Even after particularly long shifts – 12 hours, for instance – the rest period stays unchanged at 11 hours.

The law does not require a longer recovery time, but in practice employers should keep an eye on the strain involved and make sure people get time to recover.

How clockin helps you observe rest periods

In shift or project work in particular, checking rest periods manually is not easy. This is where clockin comes in: with digital working time tracking the start and end of work are documented automatically – legally compliant, transparent and to the minute.

That way you keep track of whether the statutory rest periods are being observed and can head off breaches early. Perfect for companies with changing shifts, mobile teams or weekend work.