The Public Prosecution Service is now in receipt of a lengthy file of evidence against the chief suspect in one of Northern Ireland's most notorious cold cases.
Inga Maria Hauser went missing after she arrived in Larne on a ferry from Scotland on April 6, 1988.
She had planned to make her way from Larne to the railway platform and travel south from Belfast to Dublin, but ended up travelling in the opposite direction.
Her body was found two weeks later in a remote part of Ballypatrick Forest, near Ballycastle, County Antrim.
Police believe Ms Hauser, who was from Munich, died shortly after she arrived in Northern Ireland, having been subjected to "a vicious and ruthless" sexual and physical assault.
Last year on the 30th anniversary of the disappearance of the 18-year-old backpacker the PSNI relaunched the investigation.
One strand of that was was to identify the man whose DNA was found at the crime scene.
A 59-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of her murder in May last year and was later released on bail pending further enquiries.
In February he was brought back in for further questioning.
Solicitor Claire McKeegan, of Phoenix Law, who represents the Hauser family welcomed the move saying it was an important next step in their lengthy quest for justice and that her sister Friederike Leibl became very emotional when told of the latest development.
"Given the length of time this family have already waited I would hope that the PPS could prioritise this case and ensure that there are no further delays.
"The family welcome that they are now one step closer to receiving justice for Inga".
SDLP MLA John Dallat, who has supported the family for over 20-years said: "The fact that a file has gone to the Public Prosecution Service after 31 years is welcome news and offers some hope to the Hauser Family.
"It represents the first chink of light in a long struggle for justice for their daughter Inga who died a most brutal death at the hands of a killer who was intent on raping a young girl over here during a school break to find out about a country that her parents loved.
"The Hauser family have waited all these years for something to happen and sadly her father Josef has gone to his grave early with a broken heart and with no sense of justice that anyone would be convicted of a dreadful deed that shocked the entire community.
"In the intervening years the family were not told that they were entitled to legal aid and over the 31-years they received only nine letters, all in English and a break of 10-years between two of them.
"Perhaps the saddest thing about the murder of Inga is the silence of those who know who did it, but that silence cannot be sustained for much longer.
"Hopefully the file which has gone to the Public Prosecution Service will be a historical development which will bring closure to a family who have suffered in silence for far too long", Mr Dallat added.
