Overview
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Region | Europe |
| ISO 3166-1 | DE / DEU |
| Registry | Amtsgericht (district court) |
| Last updated | 2026-05-06 |
Identifiers
Collect two identifiers from each business customer in Germany and submit them as strings on the application body.| API field | Local name | Issuer |
|---|---|---|
businessInfo.taxId | Steuernummer | Local Finanzamt |
businessInfo.businessEntityId | Handelsregisternummer | Amtsgericht (district court) |
Sector regulators
BaFin · Deutsche Bundesbank · BNetzA/Bundesnetzagentur · Bundeskartellamt
Legal structures
| Local name | Abbreviation | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Gesellschaft mit beschränkter Haftung | GmbH | Most common quota-based private limited-liability company; minimum €25,000 share capital; shareholders listed in the Gesellschafterliste filed with the Handelsregister. Equivalent to a US LLC. |
| Unternehmergesellschaft (haftungsbeschränkt) | UG | Low-capital GmbH variant requiring as little as €1; must retain 25% of annual profit as a reserve until the €25,000 GmbH threshold is reached. Closest US equivalent: SMLLC. |
| Aktiengesellschaft | AG | Share corporation with minimum €50,000 capital; mandatory Vorstand (management board) and Aufsichtsrat (supervisory board); shares freely transferable. Closest US equivalent: C-Corp. |
| Societas Europaea | SE | Pan-European public share corporation formed under EU Regulation 2157/2001; minimum €120,000 capital; enables cross-border registered-office transfer without dissolution; governed alongside German AktG. Closest US equivalent: C-Corp. |
| Kommanditgesellschaft auf Aktien | KGaA | Hybrid capital company with at least one personally liable general partner (Komplementär) and freely tradeable shares held by limited shareholders (Kommanditaktionäre); registered in HRB Section B. Closest US equivalent: C-Corp. |
| Kommanditgesellschaft | KG | Limited partnership with at least one general partner (Komplementär, unlimited liability) and one limited partner (Kommanditist, liability capped at contribution); registered in HRA. Closest US equivalent: LP. |
| GmbH & Co. KG | GmbH & Co. KG | KG whose Komplementär is a GmbH, capping personal liability; common operating and holding structure; registered in HRA. Closest US equivalent: LP. |
| Offene Handelsgesellschaft | OHG | General commercial partnership in which all partners bear unlimited joint liability; must conduct a full commercial trade and be registered in HRA. Closest US equivalent: General Partnership. |
| Gesellschaft bürgerlichen Rechts | GbR / eGbR | Civil-law partnership for two or more persons; may be unregistered (GbR) or registered in the Gesellschaftsregister (eGbR) since MoPeG effective 2024-01-01; all partners bear unlimited joint liability. Closest US equivalent: General Partnership. |
| Partnerschaftsgesellschaft | PartG | Partnership reserved exclusively for members of recognised liberal professions (e.g. lawyers, doctors, architects); registered in the Partnerschaftsregister; all partners bear unlimited joint liability for professional negligence. Closest US equivalent: LLP. |
| Partnerschaftsgesellschaft mit beschränkter Berufshaftung | PartGmbB | Variant of the PartG in which only the directly responsible partner bears personal liability for professional errors; requires mandatory professional indemnity insurance; available to regulated-profession chambers only. Closest US equivalent: LLP. |
| Einzelunternehmen / Eingetragener Kaufmann | e.K. | Sole trader conducting business as a single natural person; may operate as a small trade (Kleingewerbe, no Handelsregister entry required) or as a registered merchant (e.K.) entered in the Handelsregister; owner bears unlimited personal liability. Equivalent to a US Sole Proprietorship. |
| Eingetragene Genossenschaft | eG | Registered cooperative with at least three members; registered in the Genossenschaftsregister; members promote their economic interests collectively; liability may be limited or unlimited depending on statutes. Closest US equivalent: Cooperative. |
| Eingetragener Verein | e.V. | Registered non-commercial association; at least seven founding members; registered in the Vereinsregister at the local Amtsgericht; primary purpose must be non-commercial (ideal association). Closest US equivalent: Nonprofit Corporation (501(c)(3)). |
How documents combine
For each evidence area, this table shows whether the listed documents are alternatives (any one of) or a bundle (all required). The artifact-by-artifact lookup follows below.| Evidence area | Documents needed |
|---|---|
| Legal Registration | Handelsregisterauszug |
| Constitutive Documents | Any one of: Gesellschaftsvertrag · Satzung |
| Tax Registration | All required: Steuernummer-Bescheid + USt-IdNr-Bescheid |
| Operating Permit | Gewerbeschein |
| Ownership Records | Gesellschafterliste |
| Governance Records | Handelsregisterauszug |
| Signing Authority | Any one of: Gesellschafterbeschluss · Notarielle Vollmacht |
| Address | Any one of: Mietvertrag · Versorgungsrechnung · Kontoauszug |
Documents to collect
The physical documents you’ll collect from your customer, with the evidence area each one proves. One document can prove multiple areas — for example, Brazil’s Cartão CNPJ covers both tax and business-registration proof, so it appears once with both areas listed.| Document | Proves |
|---|---|
| Handelsregisterauszug (current printout — aktueller Ausdruck) | Legal Registration, Governance Records |
| Gesellschaftsvertrag (GmbH/UG) | Constitutive Documents |
| Satzung (AG/SE) | Constitutive Documents |
| Steuernummer-Bescheid (tax number notification) | Tax Registration |
| USt-IdNr-Bescheid (Bundeszentralamt für Steuern) | Tax Registration |
| Gewerbeschein | Operating Permit |
| Gesellschafterliste (GmbH) | Ownership Records |
| Gesellschafterbeschluss (shareholder resolution) | Signing Authority |
| Notarielle Vollmacht (notarised power of attorney) | Signing Authority |
| Mietvertrag | Address |
| Versorgungsrechnung (≤90 Tage) | Address |
| Kontoauszug (≤90 Tage) | Address |
| Sector-Specific License | BaFin Erlaubnis, Zulassung |
Collection notes
- Legal Registration: Download free at handelsregister.de; confirms HRB/HRA number, legal form, registered office, current status.
- Constitutive Documents: GmbH: notarised per GmbHG §2. AG: notarised per AktG §23. Filed with and retrievable from Handelsregister.
- Tax Registration: Steuernummer is the primary domestic tax ID issued by the local Finanzamt. USt-IdNr (DE + 9 digits) is required for EU-VAT purposes and issued by BZSt.
- Operating Permit: Required for most commercial activities; issued by local Gewerbeamt.
- Sector-Specific License: Banking (KWG §32), payment services (ZAG §10), insurance (VAG §8), investment services (WpIG §15). Collect applicable authorisation only.
- Ownership Records: GmbH Gesellschafterliste filed with and retrievable from the Handelsregister (handelsregister.de).
- Governance Records: Lists Geschäftsführer (GmbH/UG), Vorstand members (AG), and Prokuristen with scope (Einzel- or Gesamtprokura); publicly searchable.
- Signing Authority: Prokura registered in Handelsregister (HGB §§48–53) is self-evidencing from extract. For third-party representatives, use notarised Vollmacht.
- Address: Conduit universal policy: lease (no time bound) OR utility bill OR bank statement, with utility/bank dated within 90 days. Same evidence satisfies both registered-address and operating-address checks.
Person roles
When you submit a person on the application body, set theirrole to one of Conduit’s canonical BusinessPersonRole values. Use this table to map a local corporate-governance title onto the right canonical role.
| Local role | Canonical API role | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Geschäftsführer (GmbH/UG) | CONTROLLING_PERSON | Managing director; day-to-day operational authority; registered in Handelsregister. |
| Vorstandsmitglied (AG) | CONTROLLING_PERSON | AG management board member; executive authority; represents company externally. |
| Komplementär (KG / GmbH & Co. KG) | CONTROLLING_PERSON | General partner; manages partnership; bears unlimited liability in pure KG. |
| Aufsichtsratsmitglied (AG / large GmbH) | CONTROLLING_PERSON | Supervisory board member; governance/oversight role; no operational authority. |
| Prokurist | LEGAL_REPRESENTATIVE | Holder of Prokura (HGB §§48–53); broad commercial signing authority; registered in Handelsregister. |
| Bevollmächtigter (POA holder) | LEGAL_REPRESENTATIVE | Holder of notarised Vollmacht; scope defined by instrument. |
Notes
- W-IdNr is not yet a KYB substitute for USt-IdNr. Phase 1 (VAT-registered entities) started 2024-11; Phase 2 (all economically active entities) expected from Q4 2026 per BZSt. Collect USt-IdNr as primary tax identifier until further notice.