An apparatus for detecting a traffic light phase for a motor vehicle, includes: an image sensor device (10), configured to capture an image of a traffic light and to provide the image as image data; a segmentation device (20) configured to define at least one partial region of the captured image and to assign it to at least one signal lamp of the traffic light; a scaling device (30), configured to determine a maximum color saturation and/or a maximum brightness in the at least one partial region; and a computer device (40) configured to determine a signal status of the traffic light based on the maximum color saturation and/or the maximum brightness.