Privacy Policy

Last updated: 5 October 2026

1. Data controller

The person responsible for processing your personal data is:

Dr. Katharina Lewis · beziehungsweise – Psychological Counselling and Couples Counselling
Eckartstr. 12, 85586 Poing, Germany
Email: info@beziehungsweise-beratung.com
Telephone: +49 176 41759122

2. General information and legal bases

I process personal data to provide this website, respond to enquiries, organise appointments, provide counselling and manage billing.

Depending on the purpose, processing is based on your consent (Article 6(1)(a) GDPR), steps taken before entering into a contract or performance of a contract (Article 6(1)(b) GDPR), compliance with legal obligations (Article 6(1)(c) GDPR), or legitimate interests (Article 6(1)(f) GDPR). The relevant legitimate interests are described below.

Where information about your health, sex life or sexual orientation is processed, an additional exception under Article 9(2) GDPR is required. Processing such information during counselling generally requires your separate explicit consent under Article 9(2)(a) GDPR. This privacy policy does not constitute consent. My services consist of psychological counselling and couples counselling and do not involve the practice of medicine or treatment of illness.

3. Hosting and technical access data

This website is hosted by STRATO GmbH, Otto-Ostrowski-Straße 7, 10249 Berlin, Germany.

When you visit the website, technical data is processed, including your IP address, the time of access, requested pages and files, browser and operating system information and, where applicable, the page you visited previously. This processing allows the website to be delivered, ensures that it functions correctly, and helps detect and prevent attacks.

The legal basis is Article 6(1)(f) GDPR. My legitimate interest is the secure and reliable operation of this website. A data processing agreement is in place with STRATO.

According to STRATO, website visitors’ IP addresses are stored for a maximum of seven days to detect and prevent attacks. STRATO states that IP addresses or hostnames are anonymised in the access logs made available to its customers. Where personal data is lawfully required for longer to investigate a specific security incident, it is deleted once that purpose no longer applies.

4. Contacting me

If you contact me by email or telephone, I process the information you provide, including your name, contact details and the content of your message, to respond to your enquiry.

For enquiries about my services, the legal basis is Article 6(1)(b) GDPR. Other enquiries are handled on the basis of Article 6(1)(f) GDPR; my legitimate interest is responding to incoming messages.

I use Gmail as part of Google Workspace for email communication with clients. Emails are also stored in my STRATO mailboxes. This involves processing email addresses, message contents, attachments and information about sending and receiving messages. Storage serves the handling and management of my correspondence. The legal bases described above also apply to this processing. Information about STRATO is provided in Section 3, and information about Google Workspace and possible transfers to countries outside the European Economic Area is provided in Sections 6 and 10.

Please use ordinary emails and booking fields only for information necessary to organise appointments. Confidential counselling matters can be discussed during our conversation. Where emails contain special categories of personal data, the additional legal basis described in Section 2 also applies.

Enquiries that do not result in counselling are deleted six months after the enquiry has been concluded, unless statutory retention requirements or specific reasons relating to legal claims require otherwise. These deletion periods apply to both STRATO mailboxes and Gmail; storage with an additional provider does not extend the retention period.

5. Appointment booking with Amelia

I use the WordPress plugin Amelia for online appointment booking. It processes the information requested in the booking form and appointment information: your name, email address, optional telephone number and details of booked appointments.

The data is used to review and manage your booking and send appointment notifications. The legal basis is Article 6(1)(b) GDPR.

Booking data is stored in the WordPress installation with the hosting provider. Through the calendar integration, information necessary to organise appointments is transferred to Google Calendar. This includes the appointment time, the booked service as the event title, for example “Online Paarberatung” (online couples counselling), and the email addresses required for the invitation. The event description does not contain names, telephone numbers or counselling content. People with booked appointments receive a calendar invitation. If both partners are invited as guests for couples counselling, their email addresses may be visible to each other. Otherwise, only I have access to the counselling calendar. No online payment services are used; payments are made by bank transfer.

Booking data and client profiles that are no longer needed are deleted six months after the counselling series has ended, unless they are required for an ongoing contractual relationship, statutory retention obligations or the establishment or defence of legal claims.

6. Google Workspace: Gmail, Calendar and Meet

I use Gmail for client communication, Google Calendar for appointment organisation and Google Meet for online counselling, as part of Google Workspace. The provider of Google services in the European Economic Area is Google Ireland Limited, Gordon House, Barrow Street, Dublin 4, Ireland. A data processing agreement is in place for Google Workspace.

Calendar use may involve processing appointment times, contact details and organisational information. Video counselling involves processing the audio and video content you share, your display name, and technical connection and usage data. Additional storage of chat messages and files is not intended for counselling sessions.

Processing serves communication and the organisation and delivery of the agreed counselling, based on Article 6(1)(b) GDPR. For other enquiries, the legal bases described in Section 4 apply. Where special categories of personal data are involved, the additional legal basis described in Section 2 applies.

I do not record counselling sessions or use automatic transcription or AI-generated summaries of conversations.

Google may use subprocessors and process data outside the EU or EEA. Relevant contractual arrangements, recipients and transfer mechanisms are described in Section 10. Calendar entries containing personal data are deleted at the end of the second calendar year following the year of the appointment. For example, appointments from 2024 are deleted at the end of 2026. This retention serves a time-limited record of appointment organisation.

For emails, the criteria in Section 4 apply. Messages used solely to arrange appointments and send reminders are deleted six months after the relevant appointment; correspondence still required for an ongoing counselling series is deleted once that purpose has ended. Necessary contractual, billing and service records are retained separately for the applicable period and then deleted, unless statutory retention obligations or specific reasons for further retention apply. Technical operational and security data generated by the service provider may be processed independently under the applicable provider rules.

7. Counselling records

To prepare for, deliver and follow up on counselling, I process the information necessary regarding your concerns and the course of counselling. My counselling notes are kept on paper. They are stored in a lockable cabinet to which only I have access.

The legal basis is Article 6(1)(b) GDPR and, where special categories of personal data are involved, the additional legal basis described in Section 2.

Detailed paper notes are reviewed for continued necessity six months after the documented end of counselling and are securely destroyed if there is no justified further purpose. The minimum documentation necessary to establish or defend legal claims is retained separately, generally until the end of the third calendar year following the end of counselling. Longer retention occurs only where it remains necessary and legally permissible in the individual case. Retention for legal claims is based on Article 6(1)(f) GDPR; my legitimate interest is establishing and defending legal claims. Where special categories of personal data are necessary for this purpose, Article 9(2)(f) GDPR applies.

8. Invoices and accounting

I use WISO MeinBüro Online for invoicing and accounting. The provider is Buhl Data Service GmbH, Am Siebertsweiher 3/5, 57290 Neunkirchen, Germany. Data processed includes your name, billing address, invoice and service details, and payment information. Counselling notes are not stored there.

Processing for billing is based on Article 6(1)(b) GDPR, and processing to comply with tax obligations is based on Article 6(1)(c) GDPR. A data processing agreement is in place with the provider.

Invoices are generally retained for eight years, starting at the end of the calendar year in which they were issued. Legal requirements may require longer retention. Earlier invoices are kept as paper documents in locked storage. New invoices are archived exclusively in WISO MeinBüro Online. Business correspondence subject to statutory retention requirements is generally retained for six years, and relevant tax books and records for ten years, starting from the respective statutory commencement date.

9. Cookies, Complianz and Google Analytics

Consent management

This website uses Complianz to manage your cookie and privacy preferences. Your choices and the information necessary to associate those choices with you are stored. Where storage on your device is strictly necessary for this purpose, it is based on Section 25(2) of the German Telecommunications Digital Services Data Protection Act (TDDDG). Processing personal data to comply with data protection obligations is based on Article 6(1)(c) GDPR.

For non-essential cookies or similar access to your device, your consent is requested under Section 25(1) TDDDG. Where personal data is processed, this is based on Article 6(1)(a) GDPR. You can change your choices or withdraw consent for the future at any time through the cookie settings available on the website. Details of the cookies used and their durations are provided in the cookie policy: https://beziehungsweise-beratung.com/de/cookie-policy-eu/

Google Analytics

I use Google Analytics to analyse website usage statistically. The provider is Google Ireland Limited, Gordon House, Barrow Street, Dublin 4, Ireland. It is integrated through Site Kit by Google.

Google Analytics processes information including pages viewed, interactions, access times, browser and device information, the source of visits and online identifiers. Cookies may be used to associate visits and interactions. The analysis helps me understand how my website is used and improve its content.

Google Analytics is activated only after you consent to statistical processing. The legal bases are Article 6(1)(a) GDPR and, where corresponding access to your device occurs, Section 25(1) TDDDG. You can withdraw consent for the future at any time through the cookie settings.

Google states that, for access from the EU, IP addresses are used to derive location information and are then discarded, rather than logged or stored. This does not mean that the entire analysis is anonymous.

The retention period for user-level and event-level data is set to two months. This period is not extended when new activity occurs. Aggregated reports may be subject to different retention rules. Data may be transferred to Google LLC and other recipients outside the EEA; see Section 10.

Optional data sharing in the Analytics account is disabled.

Further information: https://policies.google.com/privacy?hl=en

Google Maps

Google Maps is embedded on this website to display the counselling location and help you find it. The provider is Google Ireland Limited, Gordon House, Barrow Street, Dublin 4, Ireland.

The map is initially blocked by Complianz and replaced with a placeholder. The interactive map loads only after you give consent. Loading it establishes a connection to Google. Your IP address, browser and device information, and information about your use of the map may be transmitted to Google. If you are signed in to Google, Google may associate your use with your account. Cookies or similar technologies may be used.

The legal bases are Article 6(1)(a) GDPR and, where information is stored on or accessed from your device, Section 25(1) TDDDG. You can withdraw consent for the future at any time through the cookie settings. Without consent, you can continue to use the other website content and use the stated address to find the location.

Further processing and retention by Google depend on the processing purpose and Google’s privacy rules: https://policies.google.com/privacy?hl=en. Information about possible transfers outside the EEA is provided in the following section.

10. Recipients and international data transfers

Personal data is disclosed to recipients only where necessary for the purposes described, where there is a legal basis or where you have given consent. Recipients include the service providers named above. Bank transfer payments are processed by the banks involved. Data is disclosed to authorities or other recipients where legally required or necessary for the lawful establishment or defence of legal claims.

Where processors are engaged, the requirements of Article 28 GDPR are taken into account. Processing outside the EU or EEA takes place only under the conditions of Articles 44 onwards of the GDPR.

Google services may involve transfers of data to Google LLC in the United States, affiliated companies and subprocessors. Google describes its use of the EU–US Data Privacy Framework for transfers to appropriately certified US companies and European Commission Standard Contractual Clauses for other transfers where required. Information about transfer mechanisms and safeguards is available at https://policies.google.com/privacy/frameworks?hl=en and, for Google Workspace, at https://workspace.google.com/terms/dpa_terms.html. You can request further information or a copy of the applicable safeguards using my contact details above.

11. Your rights

Subject to the applicable legal conditions, you have rights of access, rectification, erasure, restriction of processing and data portability. You can withdraw consent at any time with effect for the future. Withdrawal does not affect the lawfulness of processing carried out before it.

Right to object: Where processing is based on Article 6(1)(f) GDPR, you may object on grounds relating to your particular situation. You may object to processing for direct marketing at any time.

To exercise your rights, contact me using the details above. You also have the right to lodge a complaint with a data protection supervisory authority. For private-sector organisations in Bavaria, this is the Bavarian State Office for Data Protection Supervision (Bayerisches Landesamt für Datenschutzaufsicht): https://www.lda.bayern.de/

Where information is necessary for a contract or a legal obligation, I may be unable to process a booking or invoice counselling without it. You do not have to provide optional information.

I do not use automated decision-making, including profiling, that produces legal or similarly significant effects.