Reader question: How do I place a termination under §561 BGB and the consequences for the announced increase in rent concretely in time?
The announced higher rent would be bearable for you, but you want to move anyway. Then it is worth making your own decision: do you want to check the increase and stay, or is the special exit route under §561 BGB an option? Both require a clear timetable. Looking for a new flat does not extend the statutory declaration window.
Is the type of increase appropriate?
§561 paragraph 1 links to an increase in rent asserted by the landlord under §558 or §559. The provision permits, under its conditions, an extraordinary termination with a statutorily specified notice period. A disadvantageous deviating agreement is ineffective under paragraph 2. [BGB561]
Therefore classify the actual letter. A higher total amount can have different causes. The article does not automatically transfer §561 to an index adjustment, a new advance payment for operating costs, or any other payment demand. If there are several components, the occasion and legal basis of each component must be determined separately.
Two timing questions belong in the same overview
The provision allows the declaration until the end of the second month after receipt of the landlord's declaration and names as contract end the end of the following month. [BGB561] Therefore place receipt of the increase, the planned receipt of your termination and the resulting checked contract end side by side.
The statutory period is not a recommendation to wait until the last day. For practical planning the required form, the correct recipient side and verifiable receipt also matter. Terminations of residential tenancies require written form under §568 BGB. [BGB568] A decision stored in your personal calendar or a mere draft does not yet terminate the contract.
Fictitious example at the end of the declaration window
Assume a relevant increase declaration is received in October 2026. The two following months are November and December. The declaration window thus ends on 31 December 2026. If the proper special termination is received in good time in December, the contract end in this example case is planned for the end of February 2027. [BGB561]
The dates are freely chosen. The case assumes that §561 is actually applicable and that a valid declaration is received in good time. If another month of receipt or an earlier declaration applies, the concrete sequence of dates must be recalculated. Therefore do not adopt from the example only an isolated move-out date.
What is paid during the remaining term
If terminated in this way, the triggering rent increase under §561 does not take effect. [BGB561] That is significant for the remaining budget. However, it does not mean that no rent at all would have to be paid during the notice period.
Prepare for the remaining months an overview of the amount still owed and of the increase that concretely does not occur. Other independent claims are not cancelled without examination. If there is a dispute as to whether your declaration effectively uses the special termination route, have the payment consequences clarified before you unilaterally reduce amounts.
Link the decision to the actual move
Check when alternative accommodation is available and whether an earlier or later handover date would have to be agreed separately. An announced return of the keys and a legal contract end are two different planning points. Therefore explicitly discuss the practical handover, rather than deriving a contract alteration from an appointment offer.
In the end there is a checked termination decision and a comprehensible remaining budget. Those who want to stay still need the factual examination of the increase. Those who want to exit should make use of the special route with its own prerequisites in good time and completely.