changing the model culture of an existing Power BI Project (.pbip)

[P108]

I'm trying to change the model culture of an existing Power BI Project (.pbip) from en-US to de-DE. The model was originally created with en-US and I need to correct it afterward.

What I tried:

1. Changed Options > Regional Settings > Model language in Power BI Desktop. This was blocked (expected for an existing model).

2. Edited TMDL files manually:

   • Changed culture: en-US to culture: de-DE in model.tmdl

   • Renamed cultures/en-US.tmdl to cultures/de-DE.tmdl

   • Updated ref cultureInfo

   Still received this error:

   "Culture and Collation properties of the Model object may be changed only before any other object has been created."

3. Tried with an effectively empty model to bypass the restriction:
   Kept only:

   • database.tmdl

   • model.tmdl

   • roles/

   • cultures/de-DE.tmdl

   Removed:

   • tables/

   • relationships.tmdl

   • DAXQueries/

   • TMDLScripts/

   • diagramLayout.json

   Also set Global Options > Model language = German (Germany).

Result: same error every time.

The log indicates Power BI recognized the model as empty:

Model Default Mode: Empty
Workbook Package Info: 1* - de-DE, Query Groups: 0

Is there a supported way to change the culture/model language of an existing PBIP/TMDL model after creation? If not, what is the recommended migration approach?

[Kagiyama_yutaka]

Existing pbip cannot change its model‑culture and creating a new de‑DE pbip and moving the objects across.　　

[Future_To_BI]

Hi @P108 

try to create a new Power BI model with the desired culture:

1. Create a new PBIP/PBIX file.

2. Before creating any model objects, set:

   • File → Options → Regional Settings → Model language = German (Germany) (de-DE).

3. Create the new model.

4. Migrate the existing content (queries, tables, relationships, measures, roles, calculation groups, etc.) to the new model.

5. Reconnect or migrate reports as needed.

For large models, tools such as Tabular Editor can significantly simplify the migration process by allowing metadata objects to be copied from the old model into the new one.

[VijayP · Accepted solution]

 
@P108 

Try this. New PBIP from Scratch + TMDL Copy-Paste

This is the clean-room migration approach:

1. Create a brand new .pbip with Power BI Desktop's Global Options set to German (Germany) before adding any tables.
2. In the new model's TMDL, culture: de-DE will be set from the start.
3. Copy your table TMDL files from the old project's tables/ folder into the new project's tables/  folder.
4. Copy relationships.tmdl , roles, and other artifacts across.
5. Open the new .pbip in Desktop — it loads with de-DE from the beginning, so the engine won't reject the culture.

   This is the most reliable TMDL-native approach, tbut it requires revalidating measures and relationships after the merge.