In Lower Saxony, retail stores may be open from 12:00 a.m. on Monday through 12:00 a.m. on Saturday.

On Sundays and holidays, there is a general ban on opening and selling goods. The Lower Saxony Law on Store Opening and Sales Hours (NLöffVZG) exhaustively lists exceptions to this ban, specifically for:

• pharmacies, gas stations, retail outlets at passenger rail stations, airports, and ferry terminals,
• sales outlets for goods intended for immediate consumption to meet local needs
• retail outlets in spa and resort towns, in tourist destinations, and at pilgrimage sites,
• retail outlets that, based on their size and product range, are geared toward the sale of small-scale everyday goods,
• farm stores,
• the so-called “Sunday shopping days,” which may take place four times a year and eight times a year in tourist destinations.

Various time and shopping-basket restrictions apply to these exceptions.

The regulations in effect in Lower Saxony do not apply

• to wholesale (sales to resellers and commercial customers),
• to the sale of accessories, provided it takes place at the location where the main service is provided and the main service is not subject to the provisions of the law,
• to the sale of goods at folk festivals as well as at designated trade fairs, markets, and exhibitions,
• restaurants, video rental stores, and service businesses.