Germany. Comprehensive data protection. Act
BDSG 1990Federal Data Protection Act 1990 (Bundesdatenschutzgesetz, pre-2018 version)
Partly verified
Medium confidence.Dates from the WIPO Lex entry (adoption 20 December 1990, promulgation 29 December 1990, in force 1 June 1991) and a search-result summary of the uni-ulm.de BDSG text; the BGBl. original and gesetze-im-internet.de were not opened. The 2001 and later amendments amended this act and are not separate statutes. The 25 May 2018 end follows the existing de-bdsg-2018 row.
§1Summary
- Synopsis
A wholly new federal act adopted in 1990 following the Federal Constitutional Court's 1983 census judgment, which recognised the right to informational self-determination. It was later amended to implement Directive 95/46/EC and in 2009-2010 on credit scoring, employee data, consent and fines. It stopped applying when the BDSG 2018 took effect alongside the GDPR.
- Key themes
- Unique features
Grounded in the 1983 census judgment; legal persons generally not covered.
- SaaS relevance
Historical only; replaced by the Federal Data Protection Act 2018 (see de-bdsg-2018) and the GDPR.
§2Obligations
- Breach notification
- None
- DPO
- No
§3Dates
- Key dates
- Adopted
- In force
- Ended
- Adopted 20 December 1990 (BGBl. I S. 2954, promulgated 29 December 1990); in force 1 June 1991 (one provision, section 10(4) sentences 3 and 4, on a different schedule); amended in 2001 to implement Directive 95/46/EC and in 2009-2010; re-published 14 January 2003; replaced on 25 May 2018 by the BDSG 2018 (see de-bdsg-2018)
§4Text and authority
- Text
- Authoritative text wipo.int
§5Where it applies
- Domestic law of
- Germany
§6Sources and verification
- Sources consulted
- Verification
Medium confidence.
Partly verified
Medium confidence.Dates from the WIPO Lex entry (adoption 20 December 1990, promulgation 29 December 1990, in force 1 June 1991) and a search-result summary of the uni-ulm.de BDSG text; the BGBl. original and gesetze-im-internet.de were not opened. The 2001 and later amendments amended this act and are not separate statutes. The 25 May 2018 end follows the existing de-bdsg-2018 row.