How to found a company in Germany: 14 "easy" steps and lots of pain

Do you have any examples for this? Genuinely curious.

From where I stand most EU countries right now are talking steps backwards on this as they've become overloaded with migration waves, housing shortages, stagnating wages, which increased the far right support, so the hot topic now is how to discourage ALL immigration, not how to make life better and easier for SOME immigrants to attract them.

Sure, you obviously want to encourage the useful skilled immigration, but like I said, from where I stand it seems countries don't distinguish and are trying to make life hell for all immigrants just to plase the right wing voters since those would be frothing at the mouth if they heard their government is rolling out the red carped to attract SOME immigrants, so then for simplicity the political issue is binary, IMMIGRANTS or NO IMMIGRANTS.

"The data are published with the following health warning: The data are intended for comparisons of trends over time; they are unsuitable for comparisons of the level of average annual hours of work for a given year, because of differences in their sources and method of calculation."

Yes, in Germany are many part-time workers but overall mostly they are not working 6 hours the day . Normal is - afaik - 8 hours per day on approx. 220 days in a year.

1. *Choose Your Business Structure*: Decide whether you want to establish a sole proprietorship (Einzelunternehmen), a partnership (Gesellschaft bürgerlichen Rechts - GbR), a limited liability company (Gesellschaft mit beschränkter Haftung - GmbH), or another legal form.

2. *Business Name*: Choose a unique business name and check its availability. You can do this through the German commercial register (Handelsregister).

3. *Articles of Association (Gesellschaftsvertrag)*: Draft and notarize the articles of association if you're forming a company with others.

4. *Capital Contributions*: Determine the initial capital required for your business structure. For example, a GmbH requires a minimum share capital of €25,000.

5. *Register Business*: Register your business with the local trade office (Gewerbeamt) if it's a sole proprietorship or partnership. If you're forming a GmbH, you'll need to notarize the articles of association and register the company with the local commercial register (Handelsregister).

6. *Taxation Registration*: Register your business for tax purposes at the local tax office (Finanzamt).

7. *Obtain Necessary Permits and Licenses*: Depending on your business activities, you might need specific permits or licenses. Check with the relevant authorities.

8. *Social Security*: If you plan to employ people, you'll need to register with social security agencies.

9. *Employment Contracts*: Draft employment contracts if you're hiring employees.

10. *Open Business Bank Account*: Open a business bank account to manage your finances.

11. *Insurance*: Consider necessary insurances such as liability insurance, health insurance, etc.

12. *Data Protection Compliance*: Ensure compliance with data protection regulations, especially if you're handling personal data.

13. *Employer Obligations*: Understand and fulfill your obligations as an employer regarding taxes, social security contributions, etc.

14. *Ongoing Compliance*: Stay compliant with ongoing obligations such as filing annual reports, tax returns, etc.

Remember, these steps may vary depending on the type of business you're starting and your specific circumstances. It's advisable to consult with legal and financial professionals to ensure compliance with all legal requirements.

A part of the argument for Brexit was to enable simplifications of bureaucracy (obviously not for the specific case of someone in the EU migrating there, but for everything else). So that's not necessarily a great argument.

It hasn't been capitalized on to any great extent yet because the current government is weak and spent most of the time distracted by COVID. But the potential for simplification is actually there now, whereas previously it was often blocked by EU law.