The scope of third-party protection in planning law is of great practical importance, as it depends on the legal protection of a neighbor affected by a project. Accordingly, this topic has always received significant attention in case law and literature. The Federal Administrative Court has primarily addressed the relevant issues through the judicially developed duty of consideration. Third-party protection is only applicable to the provisions in which the court has established the duty of consideration when qualifying and individualizing circumstances are present. Against this backdrop, the paper argues that, at least since the Federal Administrative Court has moved away from the 'strict' protection norm theory, the qualification and individualization of being affected cannot be the determining factors for neighbor protection. Instead, the paper seeks to directly utilize the statutory statements and to incorporate newer approaches in the case law of the Federal Administrative Court. It concludes that there is no need to invoke the duty of consideration for third-party protection in planning law.