Business opportunities in Germany

For more information on how to start a business in Germany, please visit our website. 

A residence permit is a prerequisite for conducting business activities. Ukrainians who arrived in Germany after 24 February have the right to apply for temporary protection and a residence permit (for this purpose, the ability to speak and write German well is important). 

You must also have the necessary professional qualifications and be able to obtain the necessary permits and accreditation (depending on the type of business activity), for more information on this, please follow the link. 

In addition, you must register your business activity. You can do this by contacting the city or municipal administration and the tax office.

All employment agencies and job centres have an equal opportunities officer (BCA). The BCA will inform you, for example, about special events and offers for women.

The IQ Network supports people from abroad in setting up a company free of charge. The network advises you on behalf of the Federal Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs.

You can also get more information and sign up for preparatory (initial) seminars on starting and running a business, for more details, please follow the link. 

A private entrepreneur (in our understanding, an individual entrepreneur) can register a business under a simplified system. They will need to fill in a form and obtain a business registration certificate, as well as pay a registration fee.

It will take about a month to fill out the relevant forms (questionnaires) that will come from various organisations (the largest questionnaire is from the tax office, and tax reports will need to be submitted monthly). However, there are also annual tax returns (income tax return, VAT return, business tax return). 

Next, you will need to draw up documents for health insurance and the pension fund (in this case, you will need to indicate the amount of planned income) (with high incomes, you will need to keep separate records).

Please note that in Germany, a private entrepreneur is liable to creditors with all of his or her assets. 

The procedure for termination of business activity is based on the type of business activity, so an entrepreneur must apply to the Gewerbeamt (business office) and submit an application, receive the relevant document, and provide a copy to all the institutions mentioned above (tax office, pension fund, etc.).