Gültigkeitsgebiet: Bundesweit
If you want to start a business in Germany, it is necessary to comply with certain regulations and guidelines. Here you will find information on business formation, management, and closure, for example regarding the business license.
Business startup and trade license
With the Establishment of a company primarily involve the following steps:
Legal forms
The legal form defines the legal framework within which a company operates and has legal, personal, tax, and financial consequences.
A company cannot exist without a legal form. If no information is provided regarding the legal form, the authorities assume that it is a Sole proprietorship or, in the case of team formations, a civil law partnership (GbR).
Not all legal forms are open to all professions. For example, commercial businesses have different options than freelance professionals.
Almost all legal forms can be classified into the following categories.
To Sole proprietorship belong
To partnership belong
To Corporations belong
Joint startups can also take the legal form of a registered cooperative (eG) considering. The most important difference between sole proprietorships or partnerships and corporations lies in the Liability. For the first two legal forms mentioned, the partners are liable with their personal wealth. For corporations, the Liability of the shareholders to the Inserts Limited.
For the establishment of a Sole proprietorship or a partnership must no minimum capital be raised. Also, it is the responsibility of the owner to Management of the company. The bureaucratic effort involved in founding and later in ongoing operations is relatively high for legal forms in these categories. manageable.
At Corporations do the shareholders usually have to Minimum deposit contribute. In the case of the GmbH, this is 25,000 EUR. The bureaucratic effort is overall higher. Thus, a notary must be consulted even during the founding process, and later a regular Balance sheet to be submitted. The Management does not automatically lie with the owners of the company.
Non-governmental organizations
Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) can also be established in almost any legal form. In most cases, however, NGOs choose to be established as:
During a Foundation a clear purpose and a corporate asset are defined in advance. This is exclusively for the fulfillment of the foundation's purpose planned. A registered association is the association of at least seven natural and/or legal persons. Once entered in the register of associations, the NGO has full legal capacity as a legal entity. Here, too, the ideal purpose in the foreground. If founded with starting capital, the two legal forms non-profit LLC and gUG particularly interesting because there are clear limitations of liability here.
Registration and notification obligations
Every systematic, profit-oriented, long-term independent activity is a Trade. You must register this. The Obligation to register exists regardless of whether the activity is carried out as a main or secondary occupation. The takeover of an already existing commercial enterprise or the opening of an additional branch must also be registered. Commercial operators or business people include in particular:
Registration with the trade office
As a business owner, you must register your project with the competent Trade Office register the business at the trade office informed then all other authorities and institutions, such as
For the registration at the trade office you need the following Documents:
In some cases, a Certificate of Good Conduct or the information from the Federal Central Trade Register required.
The nature of the commercial activity should be described as precisely as possible. Also in the Company names Are there regulations. The Editing a business registration usually takes only a few days.
Tax office
Both freelance and commercial founders must submit to their tax office within a month after the opening of the business or the commencement of its activity, submit the completed „questionnaire for tax registration“.
The „Questionnaire for Tax Registration“ is electronic pursuant to section 138 paragraph 1b sentence 2 Fiscal Code of Germany to be submitted. Electronic questionnaires for tax registration and further information on submission are available in the Online Tax Office „My ELSTER“ provided.
The electronic submission obligation does not yet apply to the following formations:
In these cases, you must complete the questionnaires the Form Management System (FMS) the Federal Finance Administration can be used.
In the questionnaire, you must, among other things, provide details on future turnover and profits. The information is important for the tax office to classify the activity for tax purposes. After processing the „Questionnaire for tax registration", you will receive the Tax number communicated by the tax office.
Obtain approvals and permits
For quite a number of independent activities, you need an official permit and/or a license. The Chamber of Commerce and Industry or Chamber of Skilled Crafts informs you whether and which licenses and permits are required.
Information on whether the Operating rooms and facilities comply with statutory regulations, can be requested from the competent trade supervisory authority. For rooms that were previously used for other purposes and are to be used as business premises in the future, a change of use must be obtained from the competent Building Authority required. You should also coordinate the planning of commercial renovations and new buildings with the building authority in good time.
Register employees
For the employment of employees, a Company number from Federal Employment Agency Required. The Application can be done by telephone, in writing, by fax, or by email through the company number service.
In addition, employees must be registered for statutory pension, health, long-term care, and unemployment insurance. Furthermore, the Workers' Compensation Association be notified of the company's establishment (accident insurance).
Change legal form
In Germany, a company can adopt a different legal form through a change of legal form. The conversion into new legal forms is based on a significant Risk carries adverse legal and tax consequences. Therefore, implementation should be considered with the utmost care. This requires comprehensive advice on the courses of action by a tax advisor recommended.
When changing the legal form, in particular the provisions of Transformation Act (UmwG) be carried out. For this purpose, in particular, a detailed Transformation report and a Resolution to transform necessary for the shareholders' meeting. In addition, the incorporation rules for the desired legal form under the respective laws must be complied with. Subsequently, the new legal form of the entity must be applied for registration in the register in which the transforming entity is registered.
There is no universal solution for converting a company into another legal form. Based on the specific circumstances, the procedure must be carefully considered. However, to rule out risks, a legal and tax advice required.
Reregister a business
A business re-registration must be carried out for one of the following activities:
The business re-registration is done at the responsible Trade Office. For this you need a valid identity card or electronic residence permit (eAT) as well as a registration certificate. The registration certificate is required if the place of residence of the business owner is not also the registered office of the business.
Cancel a Business Registration
A business deregistration must take place when:
The business deregistration is done at the competent Trade Office. For this, you need a valid identity card or an electronic residence permit (eAT).
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