Why You're Charged Extra for Your Glühwein Cup: Munich's Reusable Cup Deposit, Explained
That extra charge on top of your drink at a Munich festival, beer tent, or Christmas market isn't a rip-off, it's a deposit (Pfand) on a reusable cup or mug, and German law is actually behind it. Since January 1, 2023, the Mehrwegangebotspflicht (reusable packaging obligation, under §§ 33 and 34 of the Verpackungsgesetz) requires most businesses selling drinks in disposable cups to also offer a reusable option, and at an event where the organizer runs the food and drink service, the whole event area counts as one sales floor. Only genuinely small operators, five employees or fewer AND 80 square meters or less, are exempt, and that exemption disappears once a business has multiple locations, the whole company is counted together. At Munich's Christkindlmarkt, most stands charge 5 euros deposit on their Glühwein cup, though each stand sets its own amount and design, since Munich, unlike some other German cities, doesn't use a uniform cup. Bring the cup back to any participating stand and you get your deposit back, though taking it home as a souvenir is generally tolerated too.
The Official Rule
If you’ve ever paid what felt like an odd extra charge for your Glühwein or festival beer in Munich, that’s not an arbitrary markup, it’s a legally grounded reusable-cup deposit system. Since January 1, 2023, Germany’s Mehrwegangebotspflicht, the reusable packaging offer obligation under §§ 33 and 34 of the Verpackungsgesetz (VerpackG), requires most businesses that sell food or drinks in single-use packaging to also offer customers a reusable alternative, cups included.
At an event, how this applies depends on who’s actually running the food and drink service. If the event organizer itself handles catering and beverage sales, the entire event area is treated as a single sales floor for the purposes of the law. Independent vendors with their own stands on the grounds, though, are assessed individually, based on each stand’s own size and staffing.
| Requirement | |
|---|---|
| Legal basis | §§ 33, 34 Verpackungsgesetz (VerpackG) |
| In effect since | January 1, 2023 |
| Exemption threshold | 5 or fewer employees AND 80m² or less, both required |
| Chains and multi-location businesses | No exemption, whole company counted together |
| Even exempt small stands must | Fill a customer's own reusable container on request |
The exemption is genuinely narrow, and it’s easy to misjudge as a customer. A tiny-looking stand might still be legally required to participate if it’s actually one outpost of a larger operation, because the size and staffing test applies to the whole business, not just what’s visible at that particular booth.
Munich’s Christkindlmarkt is a useful real-world example of how this looks in practice, and also where it’s genuinely inconsistent from one visit to the next. Unlike some other German cities that use a single standardized cup across their entire Christmas market, Munich’s individual stand operators each design their own cup and set their own deposit amount. Most stands at the main Marienplatz market charge 5 euros, according to the city’s own press office, but that figure isn’t guaranteed at every stand or every district market, so it’s worth treating 5 euros as a common reference point rather than a fixed citywide rule.
Returning the cup gets you the deposit back, that’s the actual mechanism, but plenty of people don’t bother. Munich’s responsible city office has said stand operators generally tolerate visitors keeping the cup as a souvenir rather than enforcing a return, and that most people do bring their cups back anyway. The Oktoberfest Maßkrug works differently in one important respect: the mug is the property of the individual tent operator, not something you’re buying outright, and walking off without paying is treated as taking someone else’s property rather than simply forfeiting a deposit. Tents also sell an official annual collector’s mug at festival souvenir stands as a legitimate way to take an Oktoberfest mug home.
What Real People Say
Local Munich coverage of the Christkindlmarkt deposit system tends to reassure newcomers on exactly the point that causes the most hesitation: nobody is going to chase you down for keeping a Glühwein cup, but if you’d rather get your money back, any participating stand will take a returned cup, even one from a different stand at the same market, generally without hassle.
Event industry guidance aimed at organizers repeatedly emphasizes that Mehrwegangebotspflicht compliance is now treated as a routine, expected part of running any food-and-drink event in Germany, not a special case, which is part of why the deposit-cup pattern shows up consistently across festivals, markets, and fairs rather than at just a few isolated locations.
Step by Step
- Expect a deposit charge on top of the drink price at most Munich festivals, beer tents, and Christmas markets, this is standard, legally grounded practice, not a one-off surcharge.
- Don’t assume the deposit amount is the same everywhere, Munich’s Christkindlmarkt stands each set their own cup design and deposit, 5 euros is common but not universal.
- Return the cup to any participating stand if you want your deposit back, you don’t need to return it to the exact stand you bought it from.
- If you’d rather keep the cup as a souvenir, know that this is generally tolerated at Munich’s Christkindlmarkt, though the deposit itself won’t be refunded.
- Treat an Oktoberfest Maßkrug differently, it belongs to the tent, not to you, and taking it without paying is a different matter than simply not returning a deposit cup. Buy the official collector’s mug at a souvenir stand if you want a legitimate keepsake.
Compliance Note
This page explains the general legal framework behind reusable cup deposits at German events and the typical practice at Munich’s Christkindlmarkt, but exact deposit amounts, cup designs, and individual vendor policies vary and can change year to year. For a specific event or stand, confirm current pricing directly on site.
FAQ & Common Pitfalls
Is the cup deposit at events the same everywhere, or does it vary?
It varies, and Munich's Christkindlmarkt is a good example of why. Unlike some other German cities that use one standardized cup across an entire market, Munich's stand operators each design and price their own cup individually, and each one sets its own deposit amount. At the main Marienplatz market, most stands charge 5 euros, but don't assume that figure applies everywhere, smaller district markets can charge differently, and other events entirely have their own systems. Check the specific stand or event if the exact amount matters to you.
Do small stands and one-off event vendors have to offer reusable cups too?
Only if they're genuinely small on both counts. The exemption requires 5 or fewer employees AND a sales area of 80 square meters or less, both conditions have to be true at once. And if a business operates multiple locations or stands, even under a franchise or chain structure, the whole company is counted together for this test, individual small stands don't get a free pass just because that one stand alone would qualify. Even exempt small operators still have to accept and fill a customer's own reusable container if asked.
Do I get my money back if I return the cup, or is it basically just the price of a souvenir?
You get the deposit back if you return the cup to a participating stand, that's the actual point of a Pfand system, it's refundable, not a disguised sale. That said, plenty of visitors do keep the cup as a keepsake instead, and at Munich's Christkindlmarkt specifically, the responsible city office has confirmed that stand operators generally tolerate this rather than chasing down every unreturned cup. For an Oktoberfest Maßkrug specifically, the mug legally belongs to the tent operator, and walking off with it without paying is treated differently, more like taking someone else's property, though tents do sell an official annual collector's mug as a legitimate souvenir option.