Vending machine shops in Nuremberg’s Old Town must remain closed in the evenings and at night on Sundays and public holidays. This was ruled by the Bavarian Administrative Court (BayVGH) in a decision issued in summary proceedings (Ref.: 22 NE 26.773 of 7 August 2026).

In its 2026 Shop Opening Hours Regulation, the City of Nuremberg has ordered the closure of unstaffed mini-supermarkets in Nuremberg’s Old Town from 00:00 to 06:00 and from 20:00 to 24:00 on Sundaysand public holidays. It based this decision on the Bavarian Shop Closing Act, which has been in force since 2025; under this Act, such unstaffed shops are permitted to remain open round the clock, but these opening hours may be restricted by regulation on the grounds of disturbance of the peace.

The owner of a vending machine shop challenged this partial closure in summary proceedings, arguing that these time restrictions did not apply to restaurants and snack bars in Nuremberg. He argued that the noise disturbance might simply shift to within the old town. As the Bavarian Higher Administrative Court (BayVGH) considered that there were insufficient facts to assess this aspect, it rejected the application for interim relief and deferred the examination of this issue to the main proceedings.

The case in Nuremberg is not an isolated incident. Measures to reduce noise in this way are currently also being considered by the administrative courts in Regensburg and Munich.