Lighting Control in Let Commercial Buildings: Who Pays, Can Landlords Pass On Costs?

In a let commercial building, the owner is generally responsible for lighting control under § 56 of the German Building Modernisation Act (GModG), which usually means the landlord. There is no statutory modernisation levy for commercial premises like the one in residential tenancy law (§ 559 BGB), because § 578(2) of the German Civil Code (BGB) does not refer to § 559. Whether investment or operating costs can be passed on to the tenant therefore depends solely on the lease. The rules on tolerating and announcing modernisation in §§ 555a to 555f BGB, on the other hand, also apply to commercial premises. General information, not legal advice.

Who has to implement lighting control?

§ 56(6) GModG requires non-residential buildings with a heating, air-conditioning or combined ventilation system with a rated output above 70 kW to be equipped with automatic lighting control by 31 December 2029. Zoning and occupancy detection should be provided as a rule. Under § 8(1) GModG the responsible party is the developer or owner; tenants are not mentioned in § 56.

In practice: the landlord must act, the tenant must tolerate the measure within the statutory rules, and the lease governs the question of costs.

Toleration and announcement in commercial leases

For leases of premises that are not residential, § 578(2) BGB declares the following provisions, among others, applicable accordingly:

Occupancy and daylight-dependent lighting control reduces electricity consumption and is therefore likely to be an energy modernisation under § 555b No. 1 BGB in many cases. Whether this applies in a specific case must be assessed individually.

Announcing the work in practice

Under § 555c(1) BGB, the modernisation must be announced in text form at least three months before it starts, stating its type and expected scope in essential outline, the expected start and the expected duration. Under paragraph 4 this does not apply to measures that only have an insignificant impact on the premises and lead to only an insignificant rent increase. Do not assume without checking that a wireless retrofit falls under this exception. If in doubt, a proper announcement is the safe route and a good basis for cooperation with the tenant.

Regardless of the legal position, an agreement under § 555f BGB covering working windows, affected areas, access rules and contacts is advisable. Wireless lighting controls help, because no ceilings are opened and no control cables laid; work at each luminaire is brief and often outside core hours, see Retrofitting lighting controls.

Investment costs: no statutory levy

In residential tenancy law, § 559 BGB allows the annual rent to be increased by a percentage of the costs incurred after certain modernisation measures. This provision sits in the subtitle on residential leases, and § 578(2) BGB specifically does not list it for commercial premises. As a result:

• The landlord cannot by law add the investment in lighting control to the commercial rent.
• Passing it on is only possible if the lease provides for it, for example through a modernisation clause, or if the parties agree in the individual case, for example in a lease addendum.
• On re-letting or lease renewal, the upgraded equipment can be reflected in rent negotiations.

Whether an existing clause is valid and covers the specific measure can only be judged from the lease wording. General information, not legal advice.

Operating costs: only what has been agreed

§ 556 BGB, under which the parties may agree that the tenant bears operating costs and which applies the Operating Costs Ordinance, is also part of residential tenancy law and is not referred to in § 578 BGB. In commercial leases the tenant therefore bears operating costs only to the extent the lease provides. In practice many commercial leases refer to the BetrKV or contain their own lists.

Three points matter for lighting control:

• Investments are not operating costs. According to the definition in § 556(1) BGB, operating costs are costs that arise on an ongoing basis. Purchasing and installing lighting control is not one of them.
• Electricity for common areas: § 2 No. 11 BetrKV lists as lighting costs the cost of electricity for outdoor lighting and for lighting shared parts of the building. If lighting control reduces this, tenants benefit through lower service charges, provided these costs are passed on under the lease.
• Maintenance and monitoring: ongoing costs for maintenance or software can only be passed on if the lease covers them. § 2 No. 17 BetrKV contains a catch-all item for other operating costs, but the lease should name such costs explicitly to avoid disputes.

Commercial tenants often pay for electricity in their own space directly via their own meter. The savings then go straight to the tenant while the landlord invests. This split between costs and benefits is often called the landlord-tenant dilemma (split incentive).

Green lease clauses as a solution

A green lease is not a legally defined term but a lease with sustainability clauses. For lighting control, the following provisions are useful:

• Consent and cooperation: the tenant agrees in principle to energy measures and provides access to luminaires and distribution boards.
• Sharing costs and benefits: the parties agree how investment and savings are shared, for example through a cost contribution or a rent adjustment.
• Data sharing: consumption and occupancy data are shared for energy reports, ESG reporting and building automation, in compliance with data protection.
• Operating settings: hold times, background light level and scenes are agreed jointly so that the control suits the use and lighting requirements under ASR A3.4 continue to be met.
• Tenant fit-out: if the tenant carries out its own fit-out, the lighting control must be retained or replaced with an equivalent.

For tenants with their own ESG reporting obligations, reliable energy data is real added value, see CSRD and ESRS energy reporting. This strengthens the landlord's position when negotiating costs.

Checklist for landlords

1. Check whether a system above 70 kW is present
2. Have leases reviewed for modernisation, cost and operating cost clauses
3. Survey the existing installation: luminaires, drivers, access to let areas
4. Announce the measure in text form in good time or agree on it under § 555f BGB
5. Agree operating settings and data sharing with tenants
6. Include green lease clauses in new leases

Conclusion

In commercial tenancy law, the duty to install lighting control lies with the owner, the duty to tolerate with the tenant, and cost allocation with the lease. There is no statutory modernisation levy, and operating costs can only be passed on where agreed. Announcing early, talking to tenants and drafting future leases with green lease clauses allows lighting control to be implemented without conflict. General information, not legal advice.

How we can help

Our focus is retrofitting: we turn existing LED luminaires with dimmable 0-10 V or DALI drivers into smart lighting with sensors and app-based lighting management – without new luminaires and without new control cables. Details under Retrofit.

In let spaces, minimal disruption matters: we work area by area in agreement with your tenants. Installation is usually carried out by us, or by your own electrical contractor if you prefer. Every project includes the AU-Manager, so occupancy detection, zoning and monitoring are included and you can provide your tenants with reliable energy data. Get in touch via our contact page.