Depending upon size, meaning and/or setting of tasks the municipalities are divided in the individual German Lands of the Federal Republic into different kinds of municipality. One can differentiate between legal names and designations for advertising purposes. In the following these different terms are listed alphabetically and described briefly.

Definition municipality

By the term municipality one understands the basic unit of the local autonomy, or differently expressed, the lowest stage in the administrative structure of a state. The municipality possesses juridical personality.

In Germany municipalities are regional administrative bodies. These cover the whole spectrum of the smallest land municipality (like e.g. Wiedenborstel in Schleswig-Holstein with 5 inhabitants) up to the large metropolitan city (e.g. Berlin as unit municipality with approx. 3.5 millions inhabitants).

The municipalities have sovereignty (the municipality has the sovereignty over its area), the all membership (all inhabitants of the municipality are "“member"” in the regional administrative body municipality) and the all competence (the municipality is in principle first of all responsible for everything in their area). For natural persons the membership in the regional administrative body results from the domicile, for legal entities from their seat carrier beside the municipalities is e.g. the State of (federation and Lands of the Federal Republic) as well as municipality and/or local federations (like e.g. Districts) regional administrative bodies.

See also: Settlement, place, living place

Unions of municipalities

Some municipalities co-operate with others. The union is either a regional administrative body (see local authorities association), an other body of the public right or a legal person under private law.

Position of the municipality in the administrative structure

The kinds of municipality to differentiate can be brought in after the degree of their independence into a stage relationship. The most remarkable, but nowadays distinction irrelevant for the position is thereby between city (municipality) and (country) municipality. In the following therefore always also a city is meant with municipality.

The individual stages - which do not exist however in all Lands of the Federal Republic - are:

1. (usual) municipality office-belonging, municipality federation-belonging, municipality central administrative body-belonging, local municipality
2. acting municipality in an office
3. (usual) office-free municipality circle-belonging, central administrative body-free municipality, federation-free municipality, unit municipality, independent municipality
4. middle city circle-belonging, medium-sized town
5. large city circle-belonging, large independent city, large district town
6. circle-free city, urban area
7. City state, free city

Office member municipality

Circle member municipality, which belongs to an office at the same time. The office is a kind of the central administrative body in the Lands of the Federal Republic Brandenburg, Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania and Schleswig-Holstein. In these countries municipalities of the same district can close circle-belonging to a new body of the public right (the "“office"”) together. The office settles determined fixed tasks (cost saving) for its municipalities office-belonging. In contrast to it there is the office-free city or office-free municipality, which settles all local tasks within own competence.

See also: Federation member municipality, central administrative body member municipality, local municipality

Central administrative body member city/municipality

A municipality circle-belonging, which belongs to a central administrative body, which settles certain tasks for it. In contrast to it the central administrative body-free municipality, which settles all tasks within own competence. Central administrative body member municipalities gives it in Baden-Wuerttemberg, Bavaria, Saxonia, Saxonia-Anhalt and Thuringia, whereby the term is used extremely rarely. One speaks only here in each case of "“municipalities"” and/or member municipalities of a central administrative body.

Federation member municipality/city

Municipality, the member in a convention community (Rhineland-Palatinate) or an administrative federation (Saxonia-Anhalt) and/or local administration federation (Baden-Wuerttemberg) is. The municipalities keep their legal independence. Federation member municipality will is used very rarely Saxonia-Anhalt. One speaks here usually only of "“municipalities"” and/or "“member municipalities of an administrative federation"”.

Local municipality

Local municipality is in Rhineland-Palatinate the name for all municipalities, the member in a convention community is. The legislator wanted to take the general term off "“municipality"” more strongly from the "“convention community"” than a special kind of the central administrative body.

Office-free municipality

Circle member municipality, which does not belong to an office. It takes all local tasks below the circles was, depending upon status (bspw. Large city circle-belonging) also parts of their tasks. There are it in the Lands of the Federal Republic Brandenburg, Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania and Schleswig-Holstein. In contrast to it the city office-belonging or municipality office-belonging.

See also: "“Unit municipality"”, "“federation-free municipality"”, "“central administrative body-free municipality"”

Central administrative body-free municipality

In Saxonia-Anhalt a municipality circle-belonging, which no central administrative body belonged and if settles all tasks within own competence. In contrast to it the member municipality of a central administrative body, which delivered certain tasks to this central administrative body.

Also in other Lands of the Federal Republic, with which there are central administrative bodies, central administrative body-free municipalities exist, although this term is not usual there.

See also: "“Office-free municipality"”, "“unit municipality"”, "“federation-free municipality"”

Federation-free municipality/city

In Rhineland-Palatinate a municipality circle-belonging, which no convention community belonged and if settles all tasks within own competence. In contrast to it the "“local municipality"”, the member in a convention community is.

See also: "“Office-free municipality"”, "“unit municipality"”, "“central administrative body-free municipality"”

Independent municipality

An independent municipality is

1. a colloquial term for a municipality contrary to the local part or living place
2. in Lower Saxony a city circle-belonging, which takes over partial tasks of the district. After "§ 12 of the Gemeindeordnung of Lower Saxony all cities with more than 30,000 inhabitants have this legal status, if they are not "“large ones of independent cities"” and/or no "“circle-free cities"”. If the number of inhabitants sinks under the border of 30.000, then the city maintains nevertheless its status as "“independent municipality"”. Also cities between 20.000 and 30.000 inhabitants can be explained on request from the federal state government to "“independent municipalities"”. If this happens, it is published in the Ministerialblatt. If the number of inhabitants drops under the border of 20.000, however the status can be extracted from the "“independent municipality"” again.

See also: "“Large independent city"” "“large one city circle-belonging"” "“middle one city circle-belonging"” "“large district town"” "“medium-sized town"”

Circle member municipality

Circle member municipalities are municipalities, which belong spatially and organizational to a district/a circle, which more or less notices tasks for it depending upon efficiency of the municipality. Mostly belong to it the range of the building code, the youth care, the school working group for vocational schools, the hospital system, the the safeguarding of traffic and - to monitoring. The municipalities are subordinated in their affairs of autonomy of the legal supervision (land) of the circle. In contrast to it the circle-free city, both the tasks of the municipality and those (land) of the circle within own competence settles. Over 99% of the municipalities in Germany circle-belonging is municipalities.

Greater member municipality/city

Municipality those the greater Saarbruecken belongs. The greater Saarbruecken is a local federation of special kind. Its member municipalities are comparable to the "“municipalities circle-belonging"” of the districts.

Middle city circle-belonging

There is the status middle one city circle-belonging only in North Rhine-Westphalia and Brandenburg for circle-belonging municipalities with more than 25,000 inhabitants. To the procedure in Brandenburg see "“large one city circle-belonging"”.

Articles in category "Kinds of municipality in Germany"

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