German Court Fee Calculator 2026: Calculate Litigation Costs under GKG and RVG

What does the German Court Fee Calculator calculate?

The calculator offers two separate types of calculation:

• German judicial dunning proceedings, including court fees and optional legal fees for the payment order and enforcement order

• German civil litigation, including court fees as well as your own and the opposing party’s legal fees for first-instance proceedings, appeals and revisions

The calculation is based on the amount in dispute entered. If multiple instances are selected, the costs of the preceding instances are included.

Court fees and litigation costs: What is the difference?

Court fees are the fees and expenses charged by the court. Their amount is determined by the German Court Fees Act (GKG) and the amount in dispute.

Litigation costs additionally include, in particular, your own legal fees and the potential risk of having to reimburse the opposing party’s legal fees. As a result, the total cost risk of litigation is generally significantly higher than the court fees alone.

German judicial dunning proceedings

For proceedings concerning an application for a payment order (Mahnbescheid), a 0.5 court fee is charged pursuant to No. 1100 of the Schedule of Costs under the GKG. The minimum fee is €38.

Applying for an enforcement order (Vollstreckungsbescheid) does not trigger a second court fee under the GKG. However, if the application is filed by a lawyer, an additional 0.5 procedural fee may be incurred under No. 3308 of the Schedule of Fees under the RVG.

For an amount in dispute of €1,000, the estimated total costs are €227.81 when including legal representation, an application for an enforcement order and VAT.

Costs of German civil litigation

In the first instance, a 3.0 court fee generally applies. Additional fees are incurred for appeals and revisions. The calculator therefore adds the costs of all instances up to the selected stage of proceedings.

For an amount in dispute of €4,000, the estimated cost risk in the first instance is €2,246.86. This includes €444 in court fees as well as your own and the opposing party’s legal fees, including VAT. A settlement and additional expert witness or witness costs are not included in this example.

Settlements and fee crediting

In the case of a full settlement in the last selected instance, the applicable court fee for that instance may be reduced. At the same time, an additional settlement fee is generally incurred under the RVG.

If a 1.3 pre-litigation business fee has already been incurred, it may be partially credited against the procedural fee for the first instance. If selected, the calculator takes into account a credit of up to a fee rate of 0.65.

Which costs are not included?

The calculation covers typical civil proceedings before German ordinary courts. In particular, it does not include:

• Family and labour court proceedings

• Administrative and criminal proceedings

• Individual fee agreements with lawyers

• Travel costs and special expenses

• Legal aid

• Partial settlements and special procedural circumstances

• Enforcement costs incurred after the conclusion of the court proceedings

The actual court cost statement and the invoices issued by the lawyers involved remain decisive.

Legal basis

The calculation is based on the Schedule of Costs under the German Court Fees Act (GKG), the GKG Fee Table, the Schedule of Fees under the German Lawyers’ Remuneration Act (RVG) and the RVG Fee Table.