WBS in Berlin: who needs one and how to get it

What a WBS is

The Wohnberechtigungsschein is a certificate from your district office (Bezirksamt) stating that your household may move into a publicly subsidised flat. A substantial part of the cheap housing stock in Berlin is subsidised and cannot be had without it.

The certificate is not a flat and not an offer: it only makes you eligible to apply for that part of the stock.

The levels

Berlin uses the levels WBS 100, 140, 160 and 180. Which one you get depends on your household income and the number of people in the household; the listing states which level the flat requires.

A higher level does not substitute for a lower one: they are separate limits, and the listing names its own.

How to apply for one

1. Apply at the Wohnungsamt of your Bezirksamt — most districts also have an online form.
2. Attach proof of income for every member of the household.
3. State your ID card or passport and your registered address.
4. Keep the certificate you receive: it is normally valid for one year and is asked for with the application.

Brandenburg has its own WBS

A Berlin WBS is not valid in Brandenburg and vice versa — the two states have their own rules. Levels 100 to 180 are a Berlin feature; in Brandenburg the certificate is issued without that grading.

That is why the service's profile records the two separately.

What the service does with a WBS — and what it does not

• It does not apply for the WBS on your behalf. You file that application yourself at the Bezirksamt.
• Whether a listing requires a WBS often cannot be read from its text. If it is not stated legibly, the application is sent and the company decides on eligibility.
• If a listing is marked as subsidised but the required level cannot be read, the service does not apply blindly.
• Your level and, separately, a Brandenburg certificate are kept in your profile and go into the forms that ask for them.

What the service does

• Watches the public listings of the companies named below in Berlin and Brandenburg — at night and at weekends too.
• Fills in their public application forms with your profile data and sends the application in your name.
• Clicks the confirmation links from the e-mails where an application does not count without that click.
• Collects the companies' replies in your account and reports invitations to a viewing.
• Flats of companies where automatic application does not work are not shown to you at all.

What the service does not do

• It does not guarantee a flat. Only the housing company decides who gets it.
• It does not attend viewings, does not book appointments and does not sign a tenancy agreement.
• It does not send your SCHUFA report or payslips — the company asks you for those later and directly.
• It does not invent anything: what is not in your profile cannot be in the form.
• If a form requires a file attachment, the service does not submit it — there is nothing to guess here.
• It is not a substitute for legal or social advice.

Companies with automated applications

Berlin: HOWOGE, degewo, Stadt und Land, Gewobag, berlinovo, WBM, Vonovia, Deutsche Wohnen, ADLER Group.

Brandenburg: WOBRA, GuWo Guben, WBG Brandenburg, WOWI Frankfurt (Oder), WOBAG Schwedt, WoGe Finsterwalde.

This list comes from the service's own code, not from a marketing page. When a company is added or changes its form, this page changes with it.

One plan: €29.99 per month including 19 % VAT, cancellable at any time. To get to know the service there is a free test drive: 24 hours, no card, up to 20 real applications, once per person. It ends on its own and does not turn into a subscription.