> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://help.immodio.app/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://help.immodio.app/en/anleitung/mietverhaltnisse/mietverhaltnis-anlegen/zeitraum/befristung/befristung-langer-als-1-jahr.md).

# Fixed term longer than 1 year

This page explains why written form is mandatory for rental agreements with a fixed term of more than one year and how to handle this process with legal certainty in Immodio.

## Legal note

If a rental agreement for residential space is to be limited to a specific period, **written form is mandatory** under **Section 550 BGB** **where the term is more than one year**. A contract that does not meet this requirement is not void under Section 125 BGB, but the agreement on the fixed term is invalid. This means an open-ended contract has been concluded. Simply sending and signing the rental agreement electronically as a PDF file, or a simple digital signature in Immodio, is **not** sufficient for this.

## How to proceed

If you create a fixed-term rental agreement with a term **of more than one year** through **Immodio**, please follow this procedure:

1. Create the fixed-term rental agreement using the Immodio rental agreement generator.
2. Download the completed rental agreement and print it out.
3. Have the printed rental agreement signed by hand by all the contracting parties named in it; this is the only way to ensure written form.

{% hint style="info" %}
In future Immodio will offer the option of **signing contracts digitally with a qualified electronic signature (QES)**, which will allow the written form to be met without paper. Until then, printing and signing by hand is mandatory.
{% endhint %}

<details>

<summary><strong>What is a QES?</strong></summary>

The qualified electronic signature (QES) is the highest level of electronic signature under the EU eIDAS Regulation. It is largely equivalent in law to a handwritten signature (Section 126a BGB) and meets all the requirements for written form in German tenancy law.

With a QES the identity of the signing person is checked in a preceding identification procedure (for example by video ident or eID). Only then can the contract be signed digitally. This ensures that the person signing really is your contracting party.

</details>