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The Gewerbeamt (trade office) of the municipality where the business operates

The Gewerbeanmeldung form (GewA 1), field by field

The GewA 1 is a federally standardised single page that starts a business in Germany. Before you fill it, answer the question it does not ask: are you actually a Gewerbe? Liberal professions under § 18 EStG — doctors, lawyers, engineers, architects, tax advisers, journalists, artists, and many independent IT consultants — are Freiberufler, do not register a Gewerbe, and do not pay trade tax. Filing this form when you did not have to creates obligations you then have to unwind.

Official name: GewA 1 — Gewerbe-Anmeldung
Who needs it: Anyone starting a commercial activity in Germany — but NOT most freelancers, who register with the tax office only.

Where to get the official form

We don't host government forms — they are revised without notice, and an outdated copy gets rejected. These links go to the issuing authority.

  • Your municipality's Gewerbeamt ↗

    The GewA 1 is a federal form issued by each municipality — search your city's site for “Gewerbeanmeldung”. Many cities now accept it online; smaller ones want it in person or by post.

  • ELSTER — the tax questionnaire that follows ↗

    After registration you must submit the Fragebogen zur steuerlichen Erfassung electronically via ELSTER. Freelancers submit this questionnaire too — for them it replaces the Gewerbeanmeldung entirely.

Have these ready before you start

  • Your ID or passport, and your registered address
  • A precise description of what you will actually do
  • The start date of the activity
  • Any permit your trade requires (crafts, food, security, brokerage and others are regulated)
  • For non-EU citizens: a residence title that permits self-employment

The business and the person

Angaben zum Betriebsinhaber

Details of the business owner

Your name, date and place of birth, nationality and private address. For a company, the legal entity and its representatives.

Anschrift der Betriebsstätte

Address of the business premises

Where the business actually operates. For a home-based business, that is your flat — which is why your lease and, in some cities, the landlord's view can matter.

Angemeldete Tätigkeit

The activity being registered

Describe concretely what you will do: “Online-Handel mit Sportbekleidung” or “IT-Beratung und Softwareentwicklung”, not “Handel” or “Beratung”.

Watch out: This single line decides whether the crafts chamber, a licensing requirement or an inspection applies to you. Too vague and the office queries it; too broad and you inherit rules for activities you never intend to do.

Datum des Beginns der Tätigkeit

Start date of the activity

The day you actually start. Registration is meant to happen at the start, not months later.

Type of registration

Neugründung / Übernahme / Verlegung / Wechsel der Rechtsform

New business / takeover / relocation / change of legal form

Tick what applies. A takeover or a move within Germany is not a new registration.

Haupterwerb / Nebenerwerb

Main occupation / sideline

Nebenerwerb if you keep an employed job alongside. It affects health-insurance classification, not the registration itself.

Watch out: If you are employed, check your contract and tell your employer where required — many contracts oblige you to disclose secondary activity.

Zahl der Beschäftigten

Number of employees

Zero at the start for most one-person businesses. Employing anyone later means a separate step: a company number (Betriebsnummer) from the Bundesagentur für Arbeit.

Erforderliche Erlaubnis / Handwerkskarte

Required permit / crafts card

Only if your trade is regulated. Restaurants, security services, brokerage, and the licensed crafts each need their own authorisation before you can start.

The mistakes that cost people

  • Registering a Gewerbe when you are a Freiberufler. Check which side you are on before filing — the classification is made by the tax office, and getting it wrong costs money and paperwork.
  • A one-word activity description, which the office queries and which can pull you into chamber membership you did not intend.
  • Registering late. The duty is to register when the activity starts, and backdating draws attention.
  • Assuming registration is the end of it. The tax questionnaire on ELSTER follows, and that is where your VAT status and tax prepayments are decided.
  • Non-EU founders overlooking that self-employment must be permitted by their residence title.

How to submit it

  1. 1Fill the GewA 1 and file it with the Gewerbeamt of the municipality where the business sits — online where offered.
  2. 2Pay the registration fee. It is set locally and is modest, typically a few tens of euros.
  3. 3Wait for the Gewerbeanmeldung confirmation (the Gewerbeschein) — that document is what banks and platforms ask for.
  4. 4Submit the Fragebogen zur steuerlichen Erfassung on ELSTER, normally within a month.

What happens next

The Gewerbeamt forwards your registration automatically to the tax office, the chamber of industry and commerce or crafts, and the statutory accident insurer. Expect letters from all of them — several look like invoices but are membership notifications; read before paying, and be sceptical of lookalike letters from private “registers”, which are a well-known scam aimed at new registrants.

Common questions

Am I a Freiberufler or a Gewerbe?

Liberal professions listed in § 18 EStG — scientific, artistic, literary, teaching or educational work, plus named professions such as doctors, lawyers, engineers and architects — are freelance and do not register a Gewerbe. Trading, manufacturing and most agency or e-commerce work is a Gewerbe. Borderline cases (IT and design especially) are decided by the tax office, so ask a Steuerberater before filing if it is close.

Do I need a German bank account first?

Not for the registration itself, but you will need one immediately afterwards for the tax questionnaire and for invoicing.

What does it cost?

A municipal fee, usually in the low tens of euros, set by each city. Any site charging you substantially more for “processing” the registration is a middleman, not the authority.

Can I register a business on a student or job-seeker residence permit?

Only if the permit allows self-employment — many do not, or allow it only with the Ausländerbehörde's approval. Check the conditions printed on your permit first.

Next

Last checked 2026-07-25. Practical guidance on filling in a form — not legal advice, and we do not submit applications on anyone's behalf. Forms and requirements change; the issuing authority's own page is always the authority.