Federal Statistical Office: Census begins on May 15th

As of: 12/29/2021 11:21 a.m.

According to the Federal Statistical Office, the census, which has been postponed due to the corona pandemic, will be rescheduled from mid-May 2022. The census will determine how many people live in Germany, how they live and work.

In Germany there will be another census next year. Eleven years after the last census, numerous data are to be updated – for example on the number of residents as well as their employment and living situation. Existing administrative data are primarily to be used, but surveys are also planned, as announced by the Federal Statistical Office. The census will determine “how many people live in Germany, how they live and work”.

The deadline is May 15th. As of this date, 10.2 million randomly selected people will be asked about their training and work situation, among other things, as the authority explained. Around 23 million owners or administrators of living space should provide information about their apartments and residential buildings. Residents of dormitories and communal accommodation are also recorded.

Only some of the questions are answered in short personal interviews; most of the questions can be answered online. “In times of Corona, the option of contactless online surveys plays a central role,” said the President of the Federal Statistical Office, Georg Thiel. “This not only relieves the respondents themselves, but also the environment.”

Results serve as a “reliable planning basis”

The census takes place every ten years, this would have been the case regularly in 2021 – but the date has been postponed due to the corona pandemic. In 2011, Germany took part in an EU-wide census for the first time. At that time it turned out that in many cities and towns there were fewer people than assumed. “The results of the census are precise population and housing figures. They serve as a reliable basis for planning decisions in the federal, state and local governments,” said the authority, explaining the objective.

Data protection requirements would be observed. The data would not be passed on to authorities outside of the official statistics. Personal data would be deleted as soon as possible. The Federal Office stated the total costs to be expected to be 1.5 billion euros.

“This not only relieves the respondents themselves, but also the environment,” said the President of the Federal Statistical Office, Georg Thiel. “In times of Corona, the option of contactless online surveys plays a central role.” The census has been scheduled to take place every ten years since 2011.

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