Wegweiser Domestic violence · Protection & support Deutsch

🔄 Perpetrator programmes and anti-violence programmes

Anti-violence and perpetrator programmes are meant to prevent renewed violence. They are mostly voluntary or imposed by a court – and are no substitute for your own protection.

Perpetrator programmes (Täterarbeit) Anti-violence training § 153a StPO Probation condition

In brief

Specialised providers offer perpetrator programmes (Täterarbeit) or anti-violence training for people who have committed domestic violence. The aim is to take responsibility for one's own behaviour and avoid renewed violence. Participation is mostly voluntary or ordered as a condition in criminal proceedings (e.g. when proceedings are discontinued subject to conditions under § 153a StPO or as a probation condition under § 56c StGB). Those affected have no individual legal entitlement to the violent person taking part in such a programme.

Step by step

  1. Raise it in the criminal proceedingsIf investigation or criminal proceedings are under way, a participation condition can be suggested to the public prosecutor's office or the court – the decision on it lies with the judiciary, however, not with the affected person.
  2. Get informationRegional providers of perpetrator programmes can be found by asking intervention centres or state networks.
  3. Secure your own protection independently of thisProtective measures such as protection orders under the Gewaltschutzgesetz should be maintained regardless of the (ex-)partner's participation in a programme.

Deadlines

No statutory deadline
Participation in perpetrator programmes is voluntary or follows the period of conditions or probation set in the individual case; no general statutory deadline exists.–
Watch out – common mistakes
  • Taking part in an anti-violence training is no proof that the danger has ended. Protective measures should be continued regardless until an independent expert assessment (e.g. by an advice centre) suggests otherwise.
  • Study results on the effectiveness of perpetrator programmes in preventing reoffending vary; there is no uniform scientific consensus on the extent of the effect – this page therefore deliberately gives no success rate.
In depth · legal basis, figures and practice – for advisers and professionals

Classification

In Germany, work with perpetrators is organised predominantly by independent providers, which have joined together, among other things, in the Bundesarbeitsgemeinschaft Täterarbeit Häusliche Gewalt (BAG TäHG) and develop professional standards for work with people who use violence. There is no federal statutory obligation to provide such programmes nationwide in the way that exists for victim protection.

Legal framework of the order

In investigation proceedings, the public prosecutor's office can, where guilt is minor, provisionally discontinue proceedings subject to conditions (e.g. participation in an anti-violence training) (§ 153a StPO). In the context of a suspended sentence, the court can issue a corresponding instruction (§ 56c StGB). This page is deliberately kept short, since it is addressed mainly to those affected, for whom perpetrator programmes are not a step of their own to take but supplementary background information.

Who is responsible
  • Independent providers of perpetrator programmes
  • Public prosecutor's office/court (where conditions are imposed)
  • Probation service
Further reading
Criminal complaint and criminal proceedingsGewaltschutzgesetz: restraining order and no-contact order

Quick questions

Worum geht es bei „Perpetrator programmes and anti-violence programmes“?
Anti-violence and perpetrator programmes are meant to prevent renewed violence. They are mostly voluntary or imposed by a court – and are no substitute for your own protection.
Which deadlines and figures matter?
No statutory deadline: Participation in perpetrator programmes is voluntary or follows the period of conditions or probation set in the individual case; no general statutory deadline exists. (–)
What should I do first?
  • Raise it in the criminal proceedings: If investigation or criminal proceedings are under way, a participation condition can be suggested to the public prosecutor's office or the court – the decision on it lies with the judiciary, however, not with the affected person.
  • Get information: Regional providers of perpetrator programmes can be found by asking intervention centres or state networks.
  • Secure your own protection independently of this: Protective measures such as protection orders under the Gewaltschutzgesetz should be maintained regardless of the (ex-)partner's participation in a programme.
What do I need to watch out for?
  • Taking part in an anti-violence training is no proof that the danger has ended. Protective measures should be continued regardless until an independent expert assessment (e.g. by an advice centre) suggests otherwise.
  • Study results on the effectiveness of perpetrator programmes in preventing reoffending vary; there is no uniform scientific consensus on the extent of the effect – this page therefore deliberately gives no success rate.
Evidence
  • Bundesarbeitsgemeinschaft Täterarbeit Häusliche Gewalt, self-presentation (bag-taeterarbeit.de)
  • § 153a StPO, § 56c StGB (gesetze-im-internet.de)
As of

As of September 2026. · Sources and method

A question about your situation that this page does not answer? Write to us or use the contact form – we will tell you which office is responsible and what to bring. Free of charge, without individual legal advice.