Trade

A trade is any activity that you carry out independently, for your own account, in your own name and on a permanent basis. It does not matter whether you actually make a profit, the intention to do so is sufficient. For your activity to be classed as a trade, it must be socially recognised. "Clairvoyance", for example, does not count towards this.

No trades are:

• the liberal professions (e.g. doctors, lawyers or tax consultants),
• Activities that require a university degree,
• Agriculture, forestry and fisheries,
• the scientific management consultancy
• the management of its own assets.
• The purpose of registration is to enable the competent authority to monitor the exercise of the trade and to carry out statistical surveys.

Notifiable are:

• in the case of sole traders, the sole trader,
• in the case of partnerships (e.g. OHG, KG, BGB-Gesellschaft) all partners entitled to manage the company and
• in the case of corporations (e.g. GmbH, AG), the legal representative.

Required documents are:

• completed form
• Copy of identity card or comparable identification document
• Current excerpt from the commercial or cooperative register, if the company is entered in the register; otherwise a copy of the articles of association (e.g. in the case of a partnership under civil law (GbR))
• If the company is domiciled abroad: documents from the country of domicile proving its legal form
• Note: In some cases, you may also need to submit additional documents or evidence. Please enquire with the responsible office

Please note: If you submit the registration in writing, you must sign the form. If you do not register the trade yourself or the legal representative does not register it himself, the person entrusted with the registration requires a written power of attorney.

The competent office forwards the business registration to other offices such as the tax office, the Chamber of Crafts or the Chamber of Industry and Commerce, the registry court and the employers' liability insurance association.

Note: If a permit is required and is not available, the competent authority may prohibit the continuation of the operation.