Press release

Published: 22 July 2026

German Bundestag petition started

The German federal government is planning to introduce a standalone Animal Experimentation Act. As part of the Freedom for Innovation Act announced in the coalition agreement, the German government plans to remove the rules governing animal experimentation from the Animal Welfare Act and place them in a separate law. This could eliminate key ethical and legal safeguards currently enshrined in the Animal Welfare Act.

In response, a coalition of ten animal protection organizations* submitted a petition to the German Bundestag in early February, opposing the proposal. The petition has now been opened for public signatures. Until August 31, 2026, citizens can sign the petition online to urge the government to abandon the planned Animal Experimentation Act and keep the regulations on animal experiments within the Animal Welfare Act. 30,000 signatures have to be collected, so that the petition will be debated in a public hearing before the Bundestag's Petitions Committee.

Removing the provisions on animal experimentation from the Animal Welfare Act would significantly weaken the legal protection afforded to millions of animals, which is already inadequate as it is. Such a move would violate both the constitutional commitment to animal protection and the long-established legislative principle saying that amendments to the Animal Welfare Act must not roll back existing legal protections.

So-called surplus animals, who are bred for research but never used in experiments, and animals who survive animal experiments, could legally be killed without a 'reasonable cause', as is currently required under Section 17 of the German Animal Welfare Act. Among other consequences, the legal obligation to provide animals with species-appropriate and needs-based feeding, care, and housing could also be removed.

Additionally, supporters of animal experimentation are calling for a simplification of the authorization procedure, which could further reduce the level of scrutiny applied by the competent authorities. Furthermore, animal protection organizations in German federal states that grant legal standing to animal welfare organizations could lose their right to challenge approvals for animal experiments in court

While the European Union has long been been promoting human-relevant, animal-free methods, the German government is instead planning to facilitate animal experimentation. The Freedom for Innovation Act should establish a clear legal framework to accelerate the transition to innovative, animal-free and human-relevant research methods. This is the only way for Germany to maintain its international competitiveness. We call for innovative, human-relevant, and animal-free science.”

The animal protection organizations are calling on the public to sign the German Bundestag petition "Stop the Planned Animal Experimentation Act" on the official website of the German Bundestag: 
https://epetitionen.bundestag.de/content/petitionen/_2026/_02/_02/Petition_194593.html

*The Animal Protection Alliance consists of:

• Ärzte gegen Tierversuche e.V. (Doctors Against Animal Experiments Germany)
• Bund gegen Missbrauch der Tiere e.V. (German Federation Against the Abuse of Animals)
• Bundesverband Menschen für Tierrechte e.V. (Federal Association People for Animal Rights)
• Deutsche Juristische Gesellschaft für Tierschutzrecht e.V. (German Legal Society for Animal Protection Law)
• Deutscher Tierschutzbund e.V. (German Animal Welfare Federation)
• mensch fair tier e.V.
• Menschen für Tierrechte Baden-Württemberg e.V. (People for Animal Rights Baden-Württemberg)
• Politischer Arbeitskreis für Tierrechte in Europa e.V. (Political Working Group for Animal Rights in Europe)
• Team Tierschutz gGmbH
• PETA Deutschland e.V. (PETA Germany)