In Germany, homeless people will rarely have to fear criminal prosecution. There are no criminal offences pertaining to homelessness as such. Even though homeless people are more likely to commit offences such as trespass, prosecution will only become a possibility where there is a complaint and the accused will not face severe punishment, but instead moderate fines.
The general activities of homeless people are no reason for administrative measures and do not result in regulatory fines either. Only special activities like aggressive begging, public nuisance and defecation in public will lead to police action, whereas silent begging, mere drinking in public and being homeless in general does not entitle the authorities to intervene.
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