What the term means
The term appears in no statute. What is meant is dispensing with control over the timing of working time, not with working time itself and certainly not with its limits.
Since the Federal Labour Court order of 13/09/2022 (1 ABR 22/21), recording is required under trust-based working time too. The ministerial draft amending the Working Hours Act expressly holds on to the model and at the same time requires records.
Distinctions
From flexitime: there there is a framework and as a rule a time account. With trust-based working time the framework is absent; an account can still be kept and has been the normal case since 2022.
From work on demand: there the employer determines the timing at short notice, though with the protective rules in section 12 of the Part-Time and Fixed-Term Employment Act. That is the opposite of trust-based working time.
Common mistake
The most widespread misconception: that trust-based working time means nothing is recorded. That was common practice before 2022 and has since been a breach of the duty under section 3(2) no. 1 ArbSchG.
This is not legal advice; for a specific case at your workplace you are better off asking someone qualified to give it.
Published by: AMNAU GmbH
Editorial responsibility: Ugur Aydogan, Product development.
Last reviewed: 2 September 2026