When a job in Germany ends, you are entitled to a written work reference (Arbeitszeugnis). On request it must cover your performance and conduct, and it must be clear: hidden messages are not allowed. German references are still written in a conventional language, though, so a sentence that sounds friendly in English can be an average grade. Here is how to read it and what you can do if it is wrong.
1. Your right to a reference
When an employment ends, the employee is entitled to a written reference (§ 109(1) GewO). This applies however the job ends: resignation, dismissal, a termination agreement or the end of a fixed term. There are two kinds:
- A simple reference (einfaches Zeugnis) states only the kind of work and how long it lasted.
- A qualified reference (qualifiziertes Zeugnis) also assesses your performance and conduct. You get one if you ask for it, and almost everyone does: a simple reference can itself look like a warning sign to the next employer.
The reference can be issued electronically only if you agree (§ 109(3) GewO); otherwise you get it on paper. Trainees (Auszubildende) have their own rule: the reference covers the training and the skills gained, and performance and conduct only if they ask (§ 16 BBiG).
Ask for a qualified reference in writing, and keep a copy. Employment contracts and collective agreements often contain short cut-off clauses (Ausschlussfristen) for claims from the job, so it is worth asking soon after you leave rather than months later.
2. Reading the grade: the satisfaction scale
The overall assessment of performance is usually one sentence about how "satisfied" the employer was. The Federal Labour Court reads these phrases as grades (BAG, 9 AZR 584/13, 18 November 2014):
| Typical German wording | Literally | Read as |
|---|---|---|
| stets zur vollsten Zufriedenheit | always to our fullest satisfaction | very good |
| stets zur vollen Zufriedenheit | always to our full satisfaction | good |
| zur vollen Zufriedenheit (or stets zur Zufriedenheit) | to our full satisfaction | satisfactory, the average |
The small words carry the grade. "Good" needs the employer to say you worked stets, immer or durchgehend (always, consistently) to its full satisfaction; "to our full satisfaction" without that word is the middle of the scale. Wording below the middle signals below-average performance. The same pattern of emphasis usually runs through the sentence on your conduct towards managers, colleagues and customers.
Read the whole reference, not only the grade sentence. It should describe your actual tasks and responsibilities accurately and in proportion to the job you did.
3. True, benevolent and without hidden codes
The law sets two limits on how a reference may be written:
- Clear, with no hidden messages. A reference must be clear and understandable, and it may not use features or wording meant to say something about you other than what its form and words show (§ 109(2) GewO). Secret codes are therefore not allowed, even though the conventional grade language in section 2 is.
- True first, then benevolent. The courts require a qualified reference to be true above all. It should be benevolent, so that it doesn't make your next job search unnecessarily hard, but only within the limits of the truth (BAG, 9 AZR 584/13). That is why you have no right to a "good" reference as such, only to an accurate one.
An employer can also be bound by what it said about you earlier, for example in an interim reference, unless something has changed since (BAG, 9 AZR 584/13, referring to BAG, 9 AZR 352/04, 21 June 2005).
4. The closing sentence
Many references end with thanks for the work, regret at the departure and good wishes for the future. Readers in Germany notice when that sentence is missing or cool. Even so, there is no legal right to it: the Federal Labour Court has held that an employer cannot be made to express thanks and good wishes, even in an otherwise good reference (BAG, 9 AZR 146/21, 25 January 2022).
In practice the closing sentence is something you ask for, or agree on. If you are negotiating your exit, for example in a termination agreement or a settlement at the labour court, agree the full wording of the reference, closing sentence included, as part of the deal.
5. An interim reference while you still work there
The statute only gives a right to a reference when the job ends. An interim reference (Zwischenzeugnis) during the job is usually asked for, and given, when there is a good reason, such as a new manager, a transfer, a restructuring or a long break like parental leave; wanting one just in case is generally not enough. Some collective agreements give the right expressly; in the public sector of the federal states, for example, employees may ask for one "for good reasons" (§ 35(2) TV-L).
An interim reference is worth having before things change: it records your performance under the manager who knew your work, and the final reference generally has to be consistent with it (see section 3).
6. Getting a reference corrected
If the reference is wrong, the usual steps are:
- Ask in writing for specific changes. Name each sentence, say what is wrong and propose the wording you want. Factual errors (dates, job title, tasks missing) are the easiest to fix.
- Collect evidence for a better grade: appraisals, target agreements, bonuses paid for performance, praise in emails, an earlier interim reference.
- Go to the labour court (Arbeitsgericht) if the employer refuses. The claim is for a corrected reference (Zeugnisberichtigung).
Who has to prove what matters. The middle of the scale ("to our full satisfaction") is the starting point: if you want a better grade, you must set out and, if necessary, prove the facts that justify it. That most references in your sector are good or very good does not change this (BAG, 9 AZR 584/13). This is why the evidence in step 2 decides most disputes.
If the reference is part of a wider dispute, such as a dismissal, the time limits for that dispute are much shorter. See what to do in the first three weeks after a dismissal.
7. When a lawyer can help
An employment lawyer can read the reference as a German employer would, draft the correction request, and negotiate the wording when you leave on agreed terms, which is often the point where most can be achieved. In the first instance at the labour court each side pays its own lawyer, whoever wins (§ 12a ArbGG), so ask about fees at the start; legal expenses insurance with employment cover may pay.
Have the reference, your contract, any interim reference, appraisals and the correspondence about it ready. You can request an English-speaking employment lawyer.
Sources checked on 17 October 2026. The linked provisions are the German statutory text and the Federal Labour Court's decisions; the explanations here are general information.