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ACCREDITATION/PRESSCARDS

There are three separate accreditations for journalists working in Germany.
They are not interchangeable and each requires an individual, annual application.

1. The accreditation issued by the BPA (Bundespresseamt - federal government press office) registers a journalist with the federal government and provides access to government press events (including the Chancellery).
2. The BUNDESTAG accreditation provides access to press events and debates in the Bundestag
3. The official journalist "press pass" is issued by the media trade union DJV (Deutsche Journalisten Verband), the trade union Verdi and others. A limited number of DJV are provided each year by the BPA (see below)

BUNDESPRESSEAMT (BPA)

BPA Verbindungsbüro (foreign press contact office)
Reichstagsufer 14
Tel: +4930182721660
Contact: Marion Smith
marion.smith@bpa.bund.de

Foreign correspondents working in Berlin can register with the contact office.
Journalists from non-EU states get here support, if they need a work permit.

The contact office has a yearly contingent of German Journalist Association (DJV) press IDs available at no charge. The decision to issue a DJV ID card from the BPA contingent is at the discretion of the contact office.

The only of the three ID cards that is classified as a "Press Pass". Whoever does not receive a press ID card from the BPA can apply directly to the
DJV: http://www.djv.de
or Verdi (deutsche journalisten union dju): http://medien-kunst-industrie.verdi.de/medien

BPA Accreditation

Reichstagsufer 14 (near the Friedrichstrasse train station)
Contact: Monika Richter
Tel: +49 30 182721601
Email: monika.richter@bpa.bund.de

An annual accreditation is available from the accreditation office of the BPA.
This provides access to the ministries and the chancellery (usually in combination with a passport/national ID card).

Press accreditations are issued until June of each year. Journalists who move to Berlin after the summer break have to wait until the following year and, in the intervening months, register for individual events (fax with full name, ID/Passport number to +4930182721666) to allow for a security check.

Condition: BPA ID applicants must prove that journalism is their main profession. This can be done by providing examples of work and through a letter from a commissioning editor. Journalists registered with the foreign press contact office in the BPA (see above) may find it easier to be issued with a BPA ID.

Renewal: Possible between November and mid-December. Journalists registered with the contact office (Verbindungsbüro) will receive a reminder letter and form. To prevent missing the application date, it is worth checking out the BPA website (or CVD website, see below) in November for the relevant press release.

Collection: Possible from the start of the year. Don't forget to bring the expired ID and your passport/national ID card to pick up your new BPA ID. The ID must be collected in person; it is not possible to send it by post.

Special BPA Accreditation: required for special events organised by the federal government (international conferences, EU meetings etc). Information is available ahead of the event on the CVD website

Bundestag Accreditation

Schiffbauerdamm 17, 3rd Floor
Tel: +493022737171
Fax: +493022736192
Email pressereferat@bundestag.de.
Contact: Heidrun Vogel +493022732924 and Corinna Weber corinna.weber@bundestag.de
Öffnungszeiten: Monday 8 am - 1 pm, 1.45 pm - 4 am, Tuesday - Thursday 8 am - 1 pm, 1.45 pm - 5 pm, Friday 8 am - 2 pm

Valid for access to all Bundestag buildings, including the Reichstag parliament building, the parliamentary committee buildings, the offices and library.

NOTE: The BPA ID is not valid in any Bundestag buildings.

Foreign correspondents can apply for a daily ID with their press ID (DJV/Verdi). For a year-long ID, fax the office a letter from the medium's editorial office abroad. More information available at www.bundestag.de in the section "Presse". It can take a number of days for the Bundestag ID to be issued, so allow some time between submitting the application and collection. Again, the ID must be collected in person and on presentation of national ID/passport. This office also issues filming permission.

SOURCES OF INFORMATION

Internet page of the federal government (CvD)

• Registration: http/cvd.bundesregierung.de

Internet pages of the main newspapers and magazines:

• www.spiegel.de
• www.faz.net
• www.sueddeutsche.de
• www.stern.de

Agency and other reports

Audio clips

Archives/Libraries

• the BPA has a press archive for correspondents. Articles can be sent by post or fax. Most useful for hard news topics (politics, business) than "soft" topics like cultural matters.
  Tel: 018882722443.
• Federal Government Digital Photo Archive: over 60,000 photos available for market rate fee. Some photos are available at no charge. The full archive is available (after registration) at http://www.bundesbildstelle.de
  Tel +4930182722330
  Email: Bilderdienst@bpa.bund.de
• Bundestag library: open to all journalists with a Bundestag ID. Housed in the Paul Löbe Haus, opposite the Reichstag building, the library has around 1.3 million books in its collection. The online catalogue is available from opac.bibliothek.bundestag.de

Other useful libraries in Berlin: the Staatsbibliothek (Potsdamer Platz and Unter den Linden) http://staatsbibliothek-berlin.de Amerika Gedenkbibliothek and Zentrallandesbibliothek www.zlb.de

Reference:

The standard public service handbook is OECKL, with information on all federal, state and public bodies, lobby groups and representational organisation. Cost: €112.80

More affordable handbooks are available from Lüthke Politikberatung, with volumes on the federal government (ca. 18 Euros) and the Bundestag (ca. 16 Euros) www.arbeitshandbuch.de

Federal Ministries

• Auswärtiges Amt: www.auswaertiges-amt.de
• BM des Inneren : www.bmi.bund.de
• BM der Justiz: www.bmj.bund.de
• BM der Finanzen: www.bundesfinanzministerium.de
• BM für Wirtschaft und Technologie: www.bmwi.de
• BM für Arbeit und Soziales: www.bmas.de
• BM für Ernährung, Landwirtschaft und Verbraucherschutz: www.bmelv.de
• BM der Verteidigung: www.bmvg.de, www.bundeswehr.de
• BM für Familie, Senioren, Frauen und Jugend: www.bmfsfj.de
• BM für Gesundheit: www.bmg.bund.de
• BM für Verkehr, Bau- und Stadtentwicklung: www.bmvbs.de
• BM für Umwelt, Naturschutz und Reaktorsicherheit: www.bmu.de
• BM für Bildung und Forschung: www.bmbf.de
• BM für wirtschaftliche Zusammenarbeit und Entwicklung: www.bmz.de

The Bundespressekonferenz member directory contains information on German colleagues (€23.50) www.bundespressekonferenz.de

The Bundestag order of business is available online www.bundestag.de/tagesordnung)

Selected parliamentary sittings available as a live stream (www.bundestag.de/tv) Speeches (www.bundestag.de/protokolle)

Biographies of MPs www.bundestag.de/abgeordnete

The Newsletter "Heute im Bundestag" contains information about non-public sittings, committee meetings, and other Bundestag business www.bundestag.de/hib/ or by email subscription www.bundestag.de/aktuell/mailing/hib_newsletter/emailverteiler.asp,

The Bundestag website "Wissen" section allows access to publications from the parliament's research division (www.bundestag.de/wissen/wissenschaftlichedienste/index.html)

Television: many German television stations available as a free online stream from www.zattoo.de

GERMAN JOURNALISTIC STANDARDS

Drawn from the rules of the Bundespressekonferenz, the following quotation rules are common at press conferences and other press appointments:

• "Unter 1": all information and quotes are for publication under the name of the person giving the information
• "Unter 2": information only for use without direct naming of source
• "Unter 3": confidential information, not for publication

Another practice, controversial among journalists, is the "authorisation" (Autorisierung) of interviews by the interview partner. Established over decades as standard practice among German journalists, interview partners may expect the opportunity to read through their quotes before publication. The German journalist union DJV distanced itself from the practice in 2003 but the tradition lives on

DISCOUNTS:

The website www.pressekonditionen.de lists offers and discounts available to journalists with valid press IDs. Offers include discounts for Deutsche Bahn, newspaper subscriptions, airlines and electronic equipment.

FORMALITIES ON ARRIVAL IN GERMANY

• Registration of address: a few days after moving to a new home, the address must be registered with the "Anmelderwohneamt" in the correspondening neighbourhood. Passport and lease are necessary.
• Work permit: journalists from non-EU countries generally need a work permit (see Verbindungsbüro (contact office) of the government press and information office above.