Overview
- An Instagram video promoting new digital services used a church exit as the example, was deleted after backlash, and the city issued an apology for the choice.
- Kiel has temporarily suspended the online church-exit procedure while the Schleswig-Holstein Interior Ministry seeks details and evaluates the approach.
- The city argues a live authenticated video connection fulfills the oral declaration to the registry office and a digital signature completes the formal requirements.
- Catholic and Protestant leaders call the promotion inappropriate and contend the law requires an in-person declaration at the civil registry or a notarized written statement.
- Local CDU figures accuse the SPD-led administration of insensitivity toward church affairs, while the city notes roughly 4,000 exits annually and a broader rollout of online civil-status services.