Business Registration

Commercial Trades Office

Although no general permit is required to start up a business enterprise, the local Commercial Trades Office (Gewerbeamt) must be notified of the establishment of permanent commercial business operations. The only exceptions to this are agricultural enterprises and members of the liberal professions, which roughly include the medical professions, legal and tax advisers, accountants, and practitioners of the fine arts.

The Commercial Trades Office maintains a Register of Commercial Trades (Gewerberegister) containing all local, commercial businesses. Although this register is technically not open to the general public, the Commercial Trades Office may answer formal requests regarding the name, address, and description of the objects of a business enterprise. Public authorities may also request information about the entries in the Commercial Register, legal form, registration dates, establishments, and the names and addresses, including former addresses, of the business proprietors.

Depending on the business sector, the registration fee ranges between € 10 and € 60. In addition to the application form, the following documents are also required: identity card or passport, a craftsman's certificate (Handwerkskarte) if the occupation is a regulated craft, an excerpt from the Commercial Register if the company is already registered. Non-EU nationals will also need to present the business permit that is found in their visa. The objects of the enterprise must be described in as much detail as possible. For some commercial professions that are supervised, supplementary proof of reliability must be provided.

Within a few days, the Commercial Trades Office will register the business enterprise in the local Register of Commercial Trades (Gewerberegister) and will then issue a business license (Gewerbeschein). This license constitutes proof of proper registration.

The Commercial Trades Office must be distinguished from the Commercial Trades Supervisory Office (Gewerbeaufsichtsamt). The latter supervises businesses to determine whether they are complying with the regulations on environmental protection, occupational safety, and consumer protection.

For European service providers, the German network of points of single contact provides individual assistance with the relevant administrative regulations and procedures. They guide you through all of the relevant application procedures.