🇩🇪 Germany · Company Registration
Entity types, registration process, required documents, costs, and official registries.
Quick answer
The most common German company is the GmbH (limited liability), which requires a notarised deed, €25,000 share capital (half paid in) and entry in the commercial register (Handelsregister). A cheaper UG ('mini-GmbH') is available with lower capital.
Companies are entered in the commercial register (Handelsregister) kept by the local courts, and a trade notification (Gewerbeanmeldung) is filed with the local trade office. The GmbH and the UG are common forms.
- The GmbH (limited liability) and the UG (a low-capital variant) are the most common company forms.
- Forming a GmbH requires notarized articles and entry in the Handelsregister.
- A separate trade notification (Gewerbeanmeldung) is filed with the local trade office.
Official authorities
- Handelsregister
Official commercial register.
- Germany Trade & Invest — Setting up
Official guide to establishing a company.
Frequently asked questions
How much capital does a GmbH need?
A GmbH needs €25,000 registered capital, with at least half paid in before registration; a UG can start from €1 but must build reserves.
Is a notary required?
Yes — forming a GmbH or UG requires a notarised deed and notarised registration in the commercial register.
How long does it take?
Once the deed is notarised and capital deposited, commercial-register entry commonly takes a couple of weeks.
Official-information aggregation, not legal advice. Always verify on the authority's own site.
Government portals
- Federal Government of Germany — Germany's Federal Cabinet official website — policy, legislation, news, and government programs
- Federal Office for Migration (BAMF) — German visas, EU Blue Card, asylum, integration courses, and permanent residency
- Federal Central Tax Office (BZSt) — Tax ID (IdNr) registration, tax identification lookup, withholding tax refunds — the key authority for foreign taxpayers in Germany