Sixteen federal states at a glance: where the most businesses are founded, where they close more often, where tax and insolvency risk are lower, and what role foreigners play. In the “Heroes and Rankings” tab you will find this year’s front-runners and the ten best states to start in.
Official data for 2025Updated 9 October 2026
MAP 01Germany’s start-up pulseDestatis · 2025
Germany’s pulse
In 2025, on average one business was founded in Germany every 49 seconds and one closed every 63 seconds. For every 100 closures there were 128 start-ups.
Start-up monitor · Germany · 2025
New start-upsFull closures
Vital balance128Start-ups per 100 closures
Start-ups640,456+7.7% vs 2024 · ≈73 per hour
Closures502,236−0.2% vs 2024 · ≈57 per hour
Net gain+138,220businesses per year
Today—new since midnight (estimate)
The rhythm is real, just sped up 50 times. “Today” is an estimate based on the 2025 average pace, not a live counter. Latest signal: in the first half of 2026, around 352,400 businesses were newly founded in Germany, 8.3% more than in the first half of 2025; of these, around 69,600 were larger businesses (+3.0%). Full business closures remained almost unchanged at around 246,600 (Destatis, 14.08.2026).
TRENDSGründungsgeschehen Deutschland 2022–2025Destatis · 2022–2025
Germany year by year
From 2022 to 2025, new businesses in Germany rose by 15 % and company insolvencies by 65 %. The balance dipped to 118 new per 100 closed in 2024 and recovered to 128 in 2025.
2022
All registrations673,463−4.5 % vs previous year
New businesses≈555,000
Full closures449,400+7.0 % vs previous year
Company insolvencies14,590+4.3 % vs previous year
123new per 100 closed
2023
All registrations715,000+6.2 % vs previous year
New businesses593,244+6.9 % vs previous year
Full closures486,876+8.3 % vs previous year
Company insolvencies17,814+22.1 % vs previous year
122new per 100 closed
2024
All registrations716,400+0.2 % vs previous year
New businesses594,515+0.2 % vs previous year
Full closures503,389+3.4 % vs previous year
Company insolvencies21,812+22.4 % vs previous year
118new per 100 closed
2025
All registrations762,400+6.4 % vs previous year
New businesses640,456+7.7 % vs previous year
Full closures502,236−0.2 % vs previous year
Company insolvencies24,064+10.3 % vs previous year
128new per 100 closed
New businesses and full closures · Germany · 2022–2025
New businesses · NeugründungenFull closures · vollständige Aufgaben
If you already run a business
65 % more insolvencies than in 2022. Check new clients and partners, and avoid long payment terms.
Competition keeps growing: about 85,000 more businesses opened in 2025 than in 2022.
2024 showed that growth can drop to zero within a year. Plan with a buffer.
If you are just starting
You are not alone: in 2025 a new business opened in Germany every 49 seconds.
Many close too, about half a million a year. Check your state’s balance in map 02 below.
Almost half of the new businesses in 2023 were side businesses (Nebenerwerb). Starting without quitting your job is normal.
Question it answers
How business formation in Germany changed over four years and where the trend is heading.
How to read
New businesses = Neugründungen, full closures = vollständige Aufgaben: the same measures as in the maps below. “All registrations” also include relocations and takeovers. The 2022 new-business figure (≈) is derived from the +6.9 % Destatis published for 2023.
Once a year, after the Destatis annual release (February–March).
MAP 02Comparing the statesState statistics · 2025
16 federal states compared
Choose a question – the map answers with colour. Green: the state does better than the federal average here. Red: worse. Grey: roughly average.
Which question the map answers
In which state especially many businesses are created, where they are more stable, and where taxes and insolvency risk are lower.
Who it is useful for
For anyone choosing a federal state to live in and to run their business in, or moving within Germany.
How to read the map
“Where are the most businesses founded?”: start-ups per 10,000 inhabitants. “More start-ups than closures?”: start-ups per 100 closures. “More start-ups than last year?”: change compared with 2024. Insolvency risk: insolvencies per 1,000 businesses. Tax: average trade tax multiplier (Hebesatz) in municipalities with 20,000 or more inhabitants. Each municipality sets its own multiplier, and the tax is due where the business is actually run; freelance professions (Freiberufler) don’t pay it. Foreigners: share of sole-proprietorship registrations by people without German citizenship; this scale is neutral, with no “better” or “worse”.
Sources
State statistical offices of the 16 states (annual reports on business notifications 2025), Destatis (federal results and population as of 31.12.2025), IfM Bonn (insolvencies per 1,000 businesses, 2025, provisional), DIHK (trade tax multipliers 2025). You will find the full list at the bottom of the page.
Gaps
Bremen and Saarland have not yet published their annual 2025 start-up figures, and Saxony-Anhalt has not yet published its number of closures. The states are compared using the definitions of their respective offices (in NRW, Hesse, Berlin, Brandenburg and Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, some indicators are based on new establishments). Small deviations are therefore possible.
MAP 03Founders without a German passportDestatis, states · 2025
The contribution of foreigners
In 2025, a quarter of new sole proprietorships in Germany were founded by people without German citizenship – 25.2%: 132,775 people, 9% more than the year before.
Out of every 100 new sole proprietorships in Germany in 2025
75 – German citizens25 – foreigners (25.2%)
Share of foreigners in sole-proprietorship registrations · by state
Dashed line: Germany overall, 25.2%. The states publish the share differently: partly relative to all sole-proprietorship registrations, partly only to new start-ups; in NRW relative to all new founders. Thuringia, Rhineland-Palatinate, Saxony-Anhalt, Baden-Württemberg, Bremen and Saarland did not publish the share for 2025.
Which foreigners found businesses most often · by state
The three most frequent nationalities among sole-proprietorship registrations in each state (in NRW: among new founders). The states publish only selected nationalities. The list is therefore incomplete.
Which question the map answers
What role foreigners play in business start-ups in Germany and in which states their share is higher.
Who it is useful for
For anyone without a German passport who is founding a business in Germany: you can see where a community and experience already exist.
How to read the chart
Each figure stands for 1% of new sole proprietorships in 2025. Dark figures: registered by nationals of other countries.
We compared the 16 federal states using six indicators for 2025. These states stand out – both positively and worryingly.
TOP 10Most founder-friendly states
The best states to start in
The Love-Act-Grow-Index combines four questions that matter to founders: Is the market growing? Is the number of businesses increasing? How high is the insolvency risk? How much trade tax is due?
Calculation
For each of the four indicators, the states are ranked from best to worst. The best receives 100 points, the worst 0, and the others fall in between. The index is the mean of the four scores.
Indicators
Growth in start-ups compared with 2024 (higher is better), start-ups per 100 closures (higher is better), insolvencies per 1,000 businesses (lower is better), average trade tax multiplier (lower is better). All four are weighted equally.
Who takes part
13 states with complete data for 2025. Bremen, Saarland and Saxony-Anhalt have not yet published all figures and are not in the ranking.
Important
This is our own calculation based on official data, not an official ranking. For your specific business, your city, your niche and your customers matter more.
TOP 3Podium
Winners’ podium
The top three places for each question.
FACTSGood to know
What you should know
A new business every 49 seconds. That is how much time lay between two start-ups in Germany on average in 2025.
Hamburg: fewer registrations, but the best balance. There were 0.9% fewer start-ups than the year before, but even fewer closures: 158 start-ups per 100 closures – the best figure in Germany.
Berlin starts up and closes down fastest. The most start-ups per inhabitant (108 per 10,000) and the highest insolvency rate (10.1 per 1,000 businesses).
NRW: heavyweight with high tax. More than one in five new businesses in Germany is created here, but the average trade tax multiplier is the highest: 474%.
People from Poland found businesses four times as often as Germans. 31 registrations per 1,000 people compared with 7 (2019, ifo). For people from Romania it is 26, from Bulgaria 21.
Every state has its own front-runners among foreigners. In Bavaria, people from Romania most often found sole proprietorships, in Hesse and Lower Saxony people from Turkey, in Berlin, Hamburg and Schleswig-Holstein people from Poland.
KEY NEWSDas Wichtigste für kleine UnternehmenOfficial sources
Key news for small businesses in Germany in 2026
New laws, thresholds, amounts and statistics – each tile with a source and a note on what it means for a sole proprietor and a small firm.
352,400 new businesses (Gewerbe) in six months
+8.3 % compared with the first half of 2025. Registrations in total: 418,100 (+8.1 %). Full closures: 246,600, the same as a year earlier. In the first quarter, growth was even stronger: +10.1 %.
For you: growth has sped up – so demand for everything around a start-up is growing too: premises, bookkeeping, advertising. And so are the queues at the Gewerbeamt.
The Grundfreibetrag (basic tax-free allowance) rose from 12,096 €. The tax scale has moved up, and for most people the Soli has in effect disappeared.
For you: the first 12,348 € of profit a year are free of income tax. With a small income at the start, the tax is often zero; check your advance tax payments.
+6.9 % year on year. First half of the year: 12,812 cases; only 2013 had more. It is mostly small firms that close: the total debt that insolvent firms left unpaid to their suppliers, banks and clients fell from 31.8 to 21.9 billion €. Transport and logistics are hit most often, followed by hospitality (70 per 10,000 firms) and construction (63).
For you: it is mostly small firms that go under. Check new clients, ask for prepayment and don’t rely on a single client.
The Bundestag passed the reform on 5.3.2026 (321 votes to 268); it takes effect in stages from 1.7.2026. The key point for self-employed people on benefits: the Jobcenter checks whether the business supports you after just one year, not later. It affects about 5.5 million people.
For you: if you start a business while on benefits, after 12 months the Jobcenter will ask whether it supports you. Plan your path to an income from day one and keep records.
Mandatory pension for new self-employed people: in preparation
On 23.6.2026, the pension commission recommended bringing into the state pension insurance everyone who starts a business after a date not yet set; those already self-employed would probably get a choice. The government promises a law by the end of 2026, with a start no earlier than 2027. For now, it is not law. The contribution under discussion depends on income: a guide figure of 735.63 € a month at average income, half that for newcomers, less with a small profit.
For you: you don’t have to pay anything yet. If you are already registered, you will most likely fall under the protection for “existing” self-employed people. A start-up relief for newcomers is under discussion; the law will have the final say.
Overview as of October 2026 · viva-finanz.de · the law has not been passed yet
2026 is the last year everyone can send invoices as PDF
From 1.1.2027, sending e-invoices (XRechnung/ZUGFeRD) is mandatory with a turnover above 800,000 €, from 1.1.2028 for everyone. Kleinunternehmer are exempt from sending them, but have had to accept them since 2025 – an e-mail address and a free viewer are enough: elster.de/eportal/e-rechnung or Quba Viewer.
For you: as a Kleinunternehmer you can keep sending PDFs. Everyone else: from 2028 only XRechnung/ZUGFeRD; most free invoicing programs can already do this.
That is what a self-employed person pays in public health insurance (GKV) on a low income – without entitlement to sick pay, plus the long-term care contribution. The funds’ average additional contribution in 2026 is 2.9 %. Until the fund sees your income, it assumes the maximum and charges the highest contribution – more than 1,200 € a month; once you send proof, the amount is recalculated.
For you: health insurance is a self-employed person’s biggest fixed cost. Send your fund your Steuerbescheid or an income forecast right away; otherwise it will temporarily charge the maximum and recalculate later.
Finanzleser · finanzleser.de · your fund will tell you the exact amount
Kleinunternehmer thresholds unchanged
25,000 € for the previous year and 100,000 € in the current one. If you started in 2026, you start as a Kleinunternehmer without a turnover forecast.
For you: if you start in 2026 and expect less than 25,000 € in turnover, choose Kleinunternehmer in the tax questionnaire: no VAT and no monthly returns.
Since 1.1.2026, working pensioners can earn up to 2,000 € a month free of income tax – but only under an employment contract, not as self-employed.
For you: a pensioner on an employment contract takes home about 400 € a month more for the same salary – which makes experienced people easier to hire and keep. For you, they cost the same as any employee: employer contributions still apply.
The highest since December 2023. Energy +14.9 %: petrol and diesel +37.1 %, heating oil +74.9 % – after a jump in oil prices. October, by first estimate: 2.8 %.
For you: if you drive to clients or deliver goods, recalculate your prices and add a clause on transport costs to your contracts.
Destatis, press releases no. 364 and 382, October 2026 · destatis.de
Net migration has almost stalled: +16,841
January–August 2026, provisional (a year earlier: +125,279). The largest: Ukraine (+24,659), India (+19,977), Kosovo (+13,571).
For you: the market of “newcomers” is shrinking – grow with clients who already live and work in Germany.
Destatis, monthly migration statistics as of 28.10.2026; totals calculated by us · destatis.de
Research allowance: 12 million € and 100 € per hour of your own work
Since 01.01.2026, the Forschungszulage (tax research allowance) is calculated on costs of up to 12 million € a year. A sole proprietor’s (Einzelunternehmer) own working hour counts at 100 € instead of 70 €, up to 40 hours a week. For projects started from 2026, 20 % is added for overheads. For small firms, the rate is 35 %.
For you: 100 € + 20 % = 120 € × 35 % ≈ 42 € for every hour of your own development work (our calculation). First a certificate from the BSFZ, then the application to the Finanzamt.
The states add more: up to 7,500 € in Bavaria, up to 15,000 € in NRW
Bavaria, Digitalbonus: 50 %, up to 7,500 € (Plus: up to 30,000 €) for digitalisation, AI, robots and IT security. Conditions: fewer than 50 employees, turnover up to 10 million €. The programme runs until 31.12.2027; freelance professions (Freiberufler) are not included. NRW, MID-Digitalisierung: 50 %, up to 15,000 € for a new digital product with AI, VR or data analytics. Recipients are chosen in a monthly draw.
For you: apply before work starts and before you sign any contracts. In Bavaria, you need an ELSTER-Unternehmenskonto to apply.
From 01.01.2027, a new Mittelstand-Digital network starts work: 6 regional and 11 thematic centres. Free AI trainers and new IT security trainers (CYBERsicher).
For you: a free IT security check and AI training – with no budget of your own for consultants.
One in three new cars is electric: 34.5 % in September
January–September 2026: 604,144 new electric cars, 27.2 % of all new cars. Since 2026 there is a purchase bonus again: 3,000–6,000 € depending on income and number of children. It applies retroactively from 01.01.2026; applications go to BAFA, and about 100,000 have been approved.
For you: business ideas: installing Wallbox charging stations, help with the bonus application in your language, servicing and care of electric cars, electric car rental.
With this salary, you can hire a skilled worker without the approval of the Bundesagentur für Arbeit (Federal Employment Agency). For shortage occupations, recent graduates and IT specialists without a degree: from 45,934 €, with the agency’s approval. The fast-track procedure for employers costs 411 € and takes about 4 months.
For you: looking for an employee from abroad? Start the fast-track procedure yourself: recognition of the qualification in 2 months, the agency’s approval within a week.
About 18 % more than a year earlier (585,000). The strongest wave of founders in recent years.
For you: competition for clients is growing, but so is the market for services for newcomers. It’s not too late to start: you are part of the biggest wave.
KfW-Gründungsmonitor 2026 · kfw.de · growth calculated by us
One in three founders has a migration background
34 % of founders in 2025. A year earlier: 30 %.
For you: you are not an exception, you are a third of the market. Banks, the IHK and public offices are used to founders with another passport.
KfW-Gründungsmonitor 2026, KfW Fokus Nr. 527 · kfw.de
7 in 10 start without quitting their job
483,000 of 690,000 combined their business with a job (Nebenerwerb).
For you: you can start without quitting: Nebenerwerb (a side business) is normal, not a loophole. Mark it in the Gewerbeanmeldung, and your insurance through your employer stays in place.
Since 1.1.2025: previous-year turnover up to 25,000 €, current-year turnover up to 100,000 €. Previously 22,000 and 50,000.
For you: with up to 25,000 € turnover a year, you can issue invoices without VAT and don’t file VAT returns. Watch the figure: hit 100,000 in the current year, and the status is lost at once.
30 % of new businesses are started by people with a migration background
In 2024, that was about 178,000 of 585,000 founders. Germany has no separate official figure for the share of GDP produced by immigrant entrepreneurs – neither Destatis nor KfW calculates it. But the scale is clear anyway:
669,000self-employed people moved to Germany themselves – both those who already hold a German passport and those who don’t yet (~19 % of all self-employed)
8 → 19 %share of immigrants among company founders, 2005 to 2022
2.3 million+jobs are provided by firms of entrepreneurs with a migration background, including the owners themselves
For you: you are not an exception: you are one in three of the country’s new entrepreneurs. That is your argument with the bank, the landlord and the Jobcenter.
+10.3 % year on year – the highest in 11 years. Only 2014 had more: 24,085.
For you: check business partners before any prepayment and don’t give long payment terms: transport, hospitality and construction close most often.
Destatis, according to ZDFheute, 13.3.2026 · zdfheute.de
Everyone accepts e-invoices
Since 1.1.2025 – even Kleinunternehmer. An ordinary e-mail inbox is enough.
For you: if another business sends you an invoice as XML, you must accept it. E-mail is enough. You can open the XML for free in ELSTER at elster.de/eportal/e-rechnung (no login) or in the Quba Viewer program. Keep the original XML for 8 years.
+14 % year on year, more than 300,000 for the first time. Most came from Syria (65,600), followed by Turkey (34,100, +51 %), Russia (19,700, +51 %) and Bosnia and Herzegovina (8,800, +126 %).
For you: citizenship opens up the Gründungszuschuss, KfW loans and public contracts without having to think about a residence permit – and it means another 332,000 potential clients and founders.
Since 28.6.2025, websites and apps where customers buy or order must be easy to use for people with poor eyesight and other disabilities: large readable text, contrast, use without a mouse. Fines up to 100,000 €. Micro-businesses offering services (up to 10 people and 2 million € turnover) are exempt.
For you: if you sell through a website or app, check the contrast, font size and keyboard use. Only services and fewer than 10 people: the law does not apply to you.
Amendment to the Basic Law (Grundgesetz) in March 2025: a fund for 12 years, 100 billion of it for the states. This means orders for construction, skilled trades and services.
For you: the money will flow through cities and states: construction, renovation, IT for schools and public offices. Those subscribed to tender alerts (e.g. evergabe.nrw.de) will see the contracts first.
Decided in 2025: 13.90 € in 2026 and 14.60 € in 2027.
For you: even if you hire someone for just a couple of hours, calculate with 13.90 € from January 2026 and 14.60 € from 2027. The Minijob limit rises automatically with the minimum wage.
ZDFheute, cabinet decision of 29.10.2025 · zdfheute.de
Minijob: up to 556 € a month
Linked to the minimum wage: already 603 € in 2026.
For you: a Minijob is the cheapest way to hire your first helper: about 30 % on top for insurance contributions and no income tax for the employee.
EU AI Act: since 2.2.2025, AI literacy is mandatory for firms of any size.
For you: if you or your staff use ChatGPT/Claude at work, put a short briefing in writing (what may be uploaded and what may not). There are no fines for micro-businesses yet, but the requirement formally exists.
−45 % compared with 2024. The largest: Ukraine (+96,000), Syria (+25,000), Turkey (+24,000) among the countries Destatis lists separately; arrivals from India are growing fast.
For you: fewer new immigrant clients are arriving – it makes sense to focus on those who are already here.
For the second year in a row. Energy −2.4 %, services +3.5 %, food +2.0 %.
For you: a calm year for prices – a good time to lock in long-term contracts with clients.
Destatis, press release no. 019, January 2026 · destatis.de
KfW digitalisation loan: no minimum amount
Since 01.07.2025, the ERP-Förderkredit Digitalisierung programme has replaced the previous digitalisation loan. Both freelancers and Einzelunternehmen can use it. The minimum loan amount was abolished; the maximum is 7.5 million € (up to 25 million for complex projects). At the LevelUp and HighEnd levels, the loan comes with a grant of 3–5 % of the amount.
For you: at the basic level, you need to complete the free Digitalisierungs-Check. You apply through your own bank (Hausbank), not directly to KfW. Suitable for buying software, an online shop, automation.
The government adopted the Hightech Agenda Deutschland: six key technologies, with artificial intelligence in first place. By 2030, 10 % of the economy is to be based on AI.
For you: this is a signal for the market, not a grant. Small firms will need helpers: AI training for staff (an EU requirement since 2025), setting up tools, data protection.
55.1 % of electricity from renewables, 117 GW of solar
16.4 GW of solar panels were added during the year, bringing the national total to 117 GW. About 430,000 balcony power plants were registered. 4.6 GW of onshore wind turbines were installed – almost twice as much as in 2024.
For you: about 430,000 new owners of balcony power plants are clients for batteries, mounts and installation, inverter repairs and help with registration.
43.2 % more than in 2024: almost one in five new cars is electric.
For you: business ideas: installing Wallbox charging stations in residential buildings and office car parks, mobile tyre fitting, detailing and interior cleaning for company fleets.
716,400 business registrations: level with 2023 (+0.2 %)
In 2024, about 716,400 Gewerbeanmeldungen (business registrations) were filed. New businesses: 594,500 (+0.2 %); larger firms – with employees or an entry in the commercial register – 120,900 (+2.1 %). Deregistrations: 619,100 (+2.7 %).
For you: despite rising insolvencies, the number of people wanting to start a business did not fall. So competition is growing too – think ahead about what sets you apart from others.
That is 22.4 % more than in 2023 – growth of more than 20 % for the second year in a row. Debts owed to creditors: about 58.1 billion €, twice as much as a year earlier. Transport and warehousing, construction and business services went insolvent most often.
For you: prepayment, payment in stages and quick invoice reminders are no longer over-caution but the norm. Make sure income from a single client does not exceed half of your total income – spread your risks.
Destatis, press release no. 096, 14.03.2025; “twice” calculated by us ·destatis.de
Citizenship after 5 years and with two passports
Since 27 June 2024, a new citizenship law has been in force: you can apply for a German passport after 5 years of living in Germany instead of 8, and after 3 years with special achievements (this fast track was abolished from 30.10.2025). You no longer have to give up your previous citizenship. But you must live on your own income.
For you: the conditions today: 5 years in Germany, German at B1, a test about the country, living without Bürgergeld, a fee of 255 € (51 € per child). Income from your business counts as means of support – keep your books and file your tax returns on time so it is easy to prove. You may keep your own passport.
According to KfW, 585,000 people started their own business in 2024 (+3 %). 382,000 as a side business, 203,000 as their main occupation. 39 % of founders are under 30.
For you: starting alongside a job is still the main route. Remember: if you combine the two, this is marked separately in the tax return and in the application.
KfW-Gründungsmonitor 2025, press release of 03.06.2025 · kfw.de
Decided: e-invoices from 2025
On 22 March 2024, the Bundesrat approved the Wachstumschancengesetz (Growth Opportunities Act). The key point for small businesses: from 2025, all companies must be able to receive an E-Rechnung (an electronic invoice in a special format; a PDF does not count). Kleinunternehmer without cross-border transactions may skip the annual VAT return, and you can be exempted from advance VAT returns if the previous year’s VAT was no more than 2,000 €.
For you: small businesses without VAT must also accept such invoices, but they don’t have to issue them. Set up a mailbox for invoices and a program that can read them.
The Jahressteuergesetz 2024 (Annual Tax Act) changed the Kleinunternehmer rule (small businesses without VAT) from 1 January 2025: up to 25,000 € turnover in the previous year and up to 100,000 € in the current one. Previously it was 22,000 and 50,000 €.
For you: an important difference: if turnover goes over 100,000 € during the year, VAT applies immediately, starting with the very transaction that crossed the threshold.
From 1 January 2024, the Mindestlohn (minimum hourly wage) was 12.41 €, and the Minijob ceiling 538 € a month. The basic Bürgergeld benefit rose to 563 €.
For you: if you hire a helper, recalculate the cost every January: in 2025 the minimum wage went up again.
Bundesregierung, «Das ändert sich im neuen Jahr» (29.12.2023) · bundesregierung.de
Chancenkarte: a new route to Germany – and new employees for you
Since 1 June 2024, a skilled worker from outside the EU can come to look for work for up to 1 year – without a job offer. This requires a recognised qualification or 6 points: a university degree or vocational training of at least 2 years, German at A1 or English at B2, experience, age. By mid-2025, 11,497 such visas had been issued. While looking for a job, the person may work up to 20 hours a week for any employers. You cannot start your own business with this card – only employment.
For you: the minimum you need to hire such an employee: a regular employment contract, registration with social insurance and at least 13.90 € an hour (2026). No approval from the Bundesagentur für Arbeit is needed. Trial work: up to 2 weeks. Want to hire them full-time? Fill in the form “Erklärung zum Beschäftigungsverhältnis”: with it, the employee switches the card for a regular work residence permit or a Blue Card.
Energy got 3.2 % cheaper, services 3.8 % more expensive.
For you: services are getting more expensive faster than goods – raise your rates along with the market.
Destatis, press release no. 020, January 2025 · destatis.de
Research tax allowance: 35 % for small firms
From 2024, the Wachstumschancengesetz expanded the Forschungszulage (tax research allowance): up to 10 million € of costs a year are taken into account (previously 4 million), the rate is 25 %, and 35 % for small and medium-sized firms. A solo entrepreneur’s own work counts at 70 € per hour (previously 40 €), up to 40 hours a week. Firms of any size qualify, including Einzelunternehmen.
For you: 70 € × 35 % = 24.50 € for every hour of your own development work (our calculation). The amount is deducted from your tax, and any remainder is paid out. First the BSFZ checks the project, then you apply to the Finanzamt via ELSTER. It fits if you are creating something new: an algorithm, an AI model, a technology – not just a website.
The programme’s last year: 50 % of the costs of consulting and implementation, up to 16,500 €, for firms with up to 100 employees. It was not extended into 2025.
For you: don’t plan around old articles about go-digital – there is no more money from it. A free alternative: advice from the Mittelstand-Digital centres.
The Mittelstand-Digital centres help small firms with digital technology and AI, free of charge and independent of vendors. In autumn 2024, a tour with 14 AI events took place.
For you: sign up for a free seminar or a review of your business at the nearest centre. It is a good first step before buying expensive software.
Solar record: +16.2 GW, 435,000 balcony power plants
16.2 GW of solar panels were installed during the year, bringing the national total to 99.3 GW. Renewables covered 54.4 % of consumption. The exchange price of electricity: 78.51 € per MWh, three times lower than in 2022 (our calculation).
For you: business ideas: home batteries and “smart” energy management, tariffs with hourly prices, solar panel maintenance for restaurants and workshops.
380,609 new electric cars were registered – fewer than a year earlier: the purchase bonus had been abolished, and manufacturers postponed new models to 2025.
For you: the dip was temporary – sales rose again in 2025. Now is a good time to learn: courses on high-voltage systems in electric cars for car mechanics.
In 2023, about 715,000 Gewerbeanmeldungen (business registrations) were filed. New businesses: 593,200 (+6.9 %); larger firms – with employees or an entry in the commercial register – 118,500 (+2.9 %). Destatis warns that, due to technical problems, some of the 2023 data are only partly comparable with the previous year.
For you: after the crisis year of 2022, people started opening businesses again. The market was reviving – a good time to look for your first clients among other newcomers.
That is 22.1 % more than in 2022, but still 5 % fewer than before the pandemic in 2019. Debts owed to creditors: about 26.6 billion €. Transport and warehousing, business services (such as staffing agencies) and construction went insolvent most often.
For you: if you work with logistics or construction, check the client before work starts and invoice in instalments, not as one sum at the end.
Since 1 January 2023, Bürgergeld (basic income support) has replaced Hartz IV. A single adult received 502 € a month (+53 €). In the first year, the Karenzzeit (grace period), savings of up to 40,000 € don’t have to be used up, and the actual rent is covered.
For you: the benefit goes to people who are able to work but cannot support themselves on their income. You can start a business while on benefits: you report the start to the Jobcenter (employment centre), and the business profit is partly offset against the payments – an income report (EKS) is submitted every six months.
According to KfW, 568,000 people started their own business in 2023 (+3 %). The growth came from Nebenerwerb (a business run on the side): 363,000 people, +11 %. 205,000 made the business their main occupation (−8 %).
For you: almost two thirds start without leaving their job. That way you can test demand without risk – just tell your employer if your employment contract requires it.
KfW-Gründungsmonitor 2024, press release of 17.06.2024; the “two thirds” share calculated by us ·kfw.de
Price brake: gas 12 ct, electricity 40 ct per kWh
From 1 March 2023 (backdated for January and February), the price for 80 % of the previous year’s consumption was capped: gas at 12 ct, electricity at 40 ct per kWh. This applied to households and small businesses until the end of 2023.
For you: these caps have ended. If the prices in your lease or energy contract are variable, check the bills yourself.
BMWK, Faktenpapier Nr. 14 (December 2022) · BMWK (PDF)
Working from home: 6 € a day, up to 1,260 € a year
Since 2023, the Homeoffice-Pauschale (home office deduction) has been 6 € per day, for a maximum of 210 days, i.e. up to 1,260 € a year. A separate study is no longer needed. The general allowance for employees rose to 1,230 €.
For you: the rule still applies. If you work from home, keep a record of the days – it is a ready-made tax saving.
New skilled immigration law: first part from 18 November
The Fachkräfteeinwanderungsgesetz (Skilled Immigration Act) came into force in stages. From 18.11.2023, the salary threshold for the Blue Card (EU Blue Card) was lowered, and qualified professionals gained a right to a residence permit and may also work outside their own profession. The next steps: 1 March and 1 June 2024.
For you: hiring skilled workers from abroad has become easier and cheaper in terms of the salary threshold. If you hold a Blue Card yourself: you can run your own business alongside your job once a separate self-employment entry has been added to your residence permit (§ 21 Abs. 6 AufenthG) – this is done before registering the Gewerbe. With a permanent residence permit (for Blue Card holders after 27 months, with German at B1 after 21), the restriction no longer applies.
The programme gave grants for hardware, software, staff training and IT security: up to 50,000 € per company, 40 % for firms with up to 50 staff. It ran from 07.09.2020 and closed on 31.12.2023.
For you: the programme was only for firms with 3 or more employees, so solo entrepreneurs did not qualify. Look for programmes in your state – see 2026.
On 07.11.2023, the government presented an action plan on artificial intelligence. More than 1.6 billion € will go into research, computing capacity and adoption. At that time, only about 15 % of companies were using AI.
For you: the plan has no direct grants for solo entrepreneurs. But demand for simple services is growing: setting up a chatbot or automating invoices and enquiries for small businesses.
More than half: 52.9 % of electricity from renewables
For the first time, more than half of electricity consumption. 14.1 GW of new solar panels were installed – twice as much as in 2022. About 260,000 balcony solar power plants were registered – three times as many. Electricity on the exchange fell from 235 € to 95 € per MWh, by about 60 % (our calculation).
For you: business ideas: turnkey sale and installation of balcony power plants, registration in the Marktstammdatenregister for clients, maintenance of rooftop solar panels.
Deutschlandticket: the whole country for 49 € a month
Since 01.05.2023, a single pass has been valid on all local transport and regional trains throughout Germany. Since 2026 it has cost 63 €, and about 14.5 million people use it.
For you: to attract staff, give them the pass as a Jobticket. If you pay at least 25 %, the transport company gives another 5 % discount (59.85 € in 2026). You can take on clients from neighbouring towns without a car.
About half a million new electric cars were registered. At the end of the year, buyers hurried: the state purchase bonus was unexpectedly abolished at the end of 2023.
For you: electric cars are gradually reaching the used-car market. Business ideas: battery checks before buying a used electric car, advice on choosing a charger.
673,500 business registrations: 4.5 % fewer than in 2021
In 2022, about 673,500 Gewerbeanmeldungen (business registrations) were filed in Germany. Of these, 554,800 were new businesses (−4.9 %), and 115,100 were larger firms – with employees or an entry in the commercial register (−9.3 %).
For you: the year of the energy crisis slowed down both large and small entrepreneurs. But even then, almost 1,850 businesses were registered in the country every day – you are definitely not alone.
Destatis, press release no. 061, 15.02.2023; per-day figure calculated by us · destatis.de
14,590
company insolvencies in 2022
That is 4.3 % more than in 2021: after two years of decline, the number of insolvencies went up again. Creditors’ claims came to about 14.8 billion €. Construction had the most cases: 2,698.
For you: a client’s insolvency means an unpaid invoice. Ask new clients for prepayment, especially in construction, and don’t delay payment reminders.
From 1 October 2022, the Mindestlohn (minimum hourly wage) rose to 12 €. The ceiling for a Minijob (a mini-job with no tax for the employee) went up to 520 € a month, and the upper limit of the “transition zone” with reduced contributions from 1,300 to 1,600 €.
For you: if you hire a helper, calculate the cost from the minimum wage – it has risen every year since then. A Minijob is often convenient for a first employee: the ceiling is now higher than in 2022.
According to KfW, 550,000 people started their own business in 2022 – 9 % fewer than a year earlier. 328,000 of them started in Nebenerwerb (a side business alongside a main job), 222,000 as their main occupation.
For you: starting “in the evenings” without quitting your job is the most common route in Germany. It is allowed; you just need to state it honestly in the application and in the tax questionnaire.
KfW-Gründungsmonitor 2023, press release of 31.05.2023 · kfw.de
32 % of founders have a migration background
Among all working-age adults, the share was 26 %.
For you: immigrants start businesses more often than average.
KfW Research, Fokus Nr. 527 (2026), chart 1 · kfw.de
Inflation 7.9 %, energy up 34.7 %
In 2022, prices rose by an average of 7.9 % – Destatis calls this a historically high level. Energy became 34.7 % more expensive, food 13.4 %.
For you: the lesson of that year: build the right to review the price once a year into contracts with regular clients. Those who worked at old rates lost money in 2022.
In 2022, 1.46 million more people moved to Germany than left – more than in any year since records began in 1950. The biggest increases were people from Ukraine (≈+962,000), Syria (+68,000) and Afghanistan (+55,000).
For you: the Russian- and Ukrainian-speaking audience has grown – both as clients (services in their native language) and as future entrepreneurs.
From 26 October 2022, employers could pay their staff an Inflationsausgleichsprämie (inflation compensation bonus) of up to 3,000 € – free of tax and social security contributions. The rule applied until 31 December 2024.
For you: the relief ended at the end of 2024. If you already employed people then, such a bonus was a cheap way to keep staff – with no tax or contributions on top.
There were more Gewerbeabmeldungen (deregistrations) than a year earlier.
For you: closing a business also has to be done officially: file a Gewerbeabmeldung (notice of closure) and inform the tax office – otherwise it will keep expecting tax returns from you.
A letter from the Federal Ministry of Finance of 22.02.2022 confirmed that computers, laptops, tablets, monitors, printers and software can be written off in one year instead of three. The rule applies from 2021 and is optional.
For you: if you bought a laptop for your business, the full price reduces your profit in the year of purchase. Keep the invoice and list the equipment in your income and expenditure account (EÜR).
BMF-Schreiben 22.02.2022 (IV C 3 – S 2190/21/10002:025) · ihk.de
go-digital: 50 % towards an IT consultant
From 01.01.2022, a new version of the programme ran until the end of 2024, with a budget of 72 million €. The state pays half of the consulting and implementation, up to 16,500 €. New modules were added: “strategy” and “working with data”. Conditions: fewer than 100 employees and turnover up to 20 million €.
For you: a website, online sales and IT security could be done at half price. The programme closed on 31.12.2024.
In 2022, almost half of Germany’s electricity consumption came from renewables.
For you: demand for installing, servicing and cleaning solar panels is growing. Grid connection is done by an electrician; installation, servicing and cleaning are separate niches for small businesses.
UBA/AGEE-Stat, «Erneuerbare Energien in Deutschland 2024 auf einen Blick», 02.2025 · umweltbundesamt.de
EEG surcharge on electricity: 3.72 ct → 0
Since 01.07.2022, customers no longer pay the EEG surcharge on their electricity bill. Since 2023, it has been abolished for good.
For you: at 3,000 kWh a year, that is ≈ 112 € saved (our calculation). Check whether your supplier passed the reduction on in your tariff. Business idea: compare tariffs for shops and cafés and help them switch supplier.
In 2022, 470,559 new electric cars were registered, 32.2 % more than in 2021.
For you: every electric car needs charging at home or at work. Demand is growing for installing wall charging stations (Wallbox), care of electric car tyres and brakes, and their repair and cleaning.
Growth percentages for KfW figures are calculated by us from the published numbers. The 2025 insolvency figure is from Destatis via ZDFheute, the 2026 figure directly from Destatis. Legal details may differ in your case – the official rule needs to be checked.
Know what you’ll be doing? Your documents in ~30 minutes
Love Act Grow asks about your activity and address in your language, works out whether you need to register a trade (Gewerbe) or only notify the tax office, and prepares the documents in German. You register where you actually run your business – the service takes your city into account.