FragDenStaat
Description
FragDenStaat is the central German platform for freedom of information, describing itself as an independent non-governmental organisation rather than a public authority. It helps people submit official information requests to German public bodies under freedom-of-information laws. It also helps them publish the documents they receive, covering things like lobbyist emails, environmental reports, meeting minutes and calendar entries.
The project rests on four pillars: a request-making platform, participatory campaigns run with partner organisations, strategic litigation, and investigative journalistic research, working closely with journalists, activists and civil-society groups.
Since it began, more than 130,000 people have used FragDenStaat to file over 250,000 requests. It has brought more than 150 lawsuits against authorities that stonewalled or wrongly rejected requests, aiming to strengthen information rights in Germany and Europe.
Behind the project is a team of lawyers, journalists and developers, supported by volunteers. FragDenStaat is run as a project of Open Knowledge Foundation Deutschland e.V., a registered association based in Berlin. It is funded partly through donations, and publishes annual and transparency reports about its financing.
Its software is free and open source, released under the MIT licence and available on GitHub, including the German-language site theme and its API. It also offers a secure, confidential channel, including PGP-encrypted email, for people who want to pass it information.
Latest news
Migration Policy: EU plans cooperation with Libyan warlord
The European Union wants to stop asylum seekers in North Africa and is relying on military leader Haftar, allows people to be tortured, abused and disappeared. This is revealed in internal documents that we are publishing for the first time.
4 Mar 2026
EU parliament: How a convicted neo-Nazi MEP plundered EU funds
While waiting for extradition, convicted neo-Nazi and MEP Ioannis Lagos was granted over € 28,900 euros in public funds on top of his salary. The European Parliament financed his travel, too.
28 Oct 2025
FragDenStaat-Fellowship: AI regulation and industry influence: The public is locked out
We asked governments in seven European countries about their meetings with Big Tech around Artificial Intelligence. While they disclosed a small amount of information, they offered numerous justifications for why citizens should not know more. This lack of transparency is a severe problem.
14 May 2025
World Climate Conference in Azerbaijan: Climate finance: a matter of accounting
Germany spends billions of euros annually on so-called climate finance. But where does the money go? And is it really that much?
11 Nov 2024
Press freedom at risk: FragDenStaat editor-in-chief Arne Semsrott in court
Are journalists allowed to publish official documents from ongoing criminal proceedings? We believe they should be, in particular if the documents are of public interest. Our editor-in-chief published decisions for search warrants – and must now stand trial in Berlin.
14 Oct 2024
Bismarck’s Hut in the Forest: The most absurd tax haven in Germany
Multimillion-dollar companies operate mailboxes in a wooden hut deep in the North German forest. But the low taxes they pay don’t go into public coffers—they go to the estate owner: Count Gregor von Bismarck, great-great-grandson of Germany’s first chancellor.
11 Oct 2024
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