(1) Proceedings relating to administrative offences as defined in Section 81 shall become statute-barred in accordance with the provisions of the German Administrative Offences Act even if the offence is committed by disseminating printed material. Proceedings due to administrative offences as defined in Section 81(1), (2) no 1 and 81(3) shall become statute-barred after five years.
(2) The limitation period pursuant to Section 33(1) no 1 of the German Administrative Offences Act shall also be interrupted by the issuance of the first request for information addressed to the party affected pursuant to Section 82b(1) in conjunction with Section 59, provided that the request is delivered within two weeks; otherwise, the limitation period is interrupted by service of the request.
(3) The limitation period shall be suspended as long as the European Commission or the competition authority of another Member State of the European Union, acting upon a complaint or ex officio, is engaged in proceedings relating to an infringement of Article 101 or Article 102 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union concerning the same agreement, decision or practice as the competition authority. The suspension of the limitation period shall commence when such competition authorities adopt measures within the meaning of Section 33(1) of the Administrative Offences Act and subsection (2). The limitation period shall remain suspended until the day on which the other competition authority terminates its proceedings completely by issuing a final decision or has concluded that there are no grounds for further action on its part. The suspension of the limitation period shall apply to all undertakings or associations of undertakings which have participated in the infringement.
(4) The limitation period shall expire at the latest on the day on which a period twice as long as the limitation period has elapsed. This period shall be extended, in deviation from Section 33(3) sentence 2 of the German Administrative Offences Act, by the period during which the fining decision is the subject of proceedings pending before an appellate court.