Freelance activity; notification of the opening of a business
The commencement of a freelance activity must be reported directly to the competent tax office without any formalities. The responsible tax office is informed by the respective municipality about the registration of a business. In addition, you must provide the competent tax office with further information on the legal and factual circumstances relevant for taxation.
Description
If you take up a freelance activity, you must notify the competent tax office directly within one month (§ 138 of the German Fiscal Code (AO). In principle, an informal registration is sufficient. In principle, the tax office in whose district you have your residence or in whose district you carry out your commercial or freelance activity is locally responsible.
If, on the other hand, you open a commercial business or a permanent establishment, you must notify the local authority (for further information, see "Related Topics" - "Trade Notification; Trade Registration"). The tax office will then be informed of your commercial activity directly by the municipality.
In addition, you must provide the tax office with further information on the legal and factual circumstances relevant to taxation within one month; there are various "tax registration questionnaires" for this purpose.
The following questionnaires are distinguished:
- Taking up a commercial, self-employed (freelance) or agricultural and forestry activity (sole proprietorship);
- Formation of a partnership/association;
- Formation of a corporation or cooperative;
- Formation of a corporation under foreign law;
- Formation of an association or other private-law corporation within the meaning of § 1 (1) numbers 4 and 5 KStG or commencement of an economic/entrepreneurial activity.
Based on the information you provide in the questionnaire, the tax office will assign a tax number and possibly set advance payments.
Procedure
For the following questionnaires for tax recording, there is an obligation to transmit information electronically to the tax office (in accordance with Section 138 (1b) sentence 2 AO); unless the tax office has permitted the provision of information on the basis of an officially prescribed form upon application due to a case of hardship (Section 138 (1b) sentence 3 AO):
Questionnaires to be submitted electronicallyas of 1 January 2021:
- Commencement of a commercial, self-employed (freelance) or agricultural and forestry activity (sole proprietorship);
- Formation of a partnership/association;
- Formation of a corporation or cooperative.
Questionnaires to be submitted electronicallyfrom 1 January 2022:
- Establishment of a corporation under foreign law.
The questionnaires can be completed in the service portal of the tax administration "My ELSTER" and sent electronically to the tax office (see under tab "Online procedure").
In the following case, the information must be provided in accordance with the officially prescribed formuntil further notice:
- Establishment of an association or other private law entity within the meaning of Section 1(1)(4) and (5) KStG or commencement of an economic/entrepreneurial activity.
The officially prescribed form for this questionnaire is available at www.formulare-bfinv.de.
Deadlines
You must notify the competent tax office of the commencement of freelance work within one month.
In addition, you must provide the tax office with further information on the legal and factual circumstances relevant for taxation within one month (see: questionnaires for tax registration).
Forms
Please select a location in "Localization" so that the address of the responsible authority can be filled in.
Links to more information
Status: 02.12.2021
Responsible for editing: Bayerisches Staatsministerium der Finanzen und für Heimat
- Online transactions, Bavaria-wide
- Online transactions, locally limited
- Form, Bavaria-wide
- Form, locally limited
- Prefillable Form, Bavaria-wide
- Legal bases, Bavaria-wide
- Legal bases, locally limited
- Fees, Bavaria-wide
- Fees, locally limited