Germany

Non-therapeutic male circumcision of minors is explicitly legal in Germany under §1631d of the Civil Code (BGB), enacted after a 2012 court ruling threw its legality into doubt. Parents may consent to it if it is performed according to the "rules of medical practice" and does not endanger the child’s welfare; specially-trained non-physicians designated by a religious community may perform it in the first six months of life.

The law was triggered by a landmark case: on 7 May 2012 the Cologne Regional Court (Landgericht Köln, 151 Ns 169/11) ruled that non-therapeutic circumcision of a minor constitutes criminal bodily harm (Körperverletzung) even when performed lege artis with parental consent — the child’s physical integrity outweighing parental and religious rights — though it acquitted the defendant doctor on the ground of an unavoidable mistake of law (§17 StGB) given the unclear legal situation. The ruling was a single regional decision, not binding nationwide, but it created legal uncertainty that prompted a swift legislative response. The Bundestag passed a non-binding resolution (19 Jul 2012) and then enacted §1631d BGB on 12 Dec 2012 by 434–100 (46 abstentions); the statute (BGBl. 2012 I p. 2749) entered into force on 28 Dec 2012. §1631d(1) authorises parental consent to a medically unnecessary circumcision performed per the rules of medical practice, with a child-welfare safeguard; §1631d(2) (the "Mohel clause") permits trained non-physicians designated by a religious community to perform it in the first six months. The German Ethics Council had recommended (Aug 2012) legal and professional standards rather than a ban. The law remains in force and is academically contested on constitutional/equality grounds, but its text and meaning are settled. Status REGULATED reflects an explicit permissive statute with conditions — not an absence of law.