Company Register

The Unternehmensregister: Germany's central filing portal for company accounts

Since 2022 the Unternehmensregister (German Company Register) is the single point where corporations file their annual financial statements and where the public retrieves them. This page walks through what it is, how registration and submission work, and how it differs from the Handelsregister.

What the Unternehmensregister is

The Unternehmensregister (www.unternehmensregister.de) is Germany's central electronic register for company information, established under § 8b HGB. It bundles data from the trade register, insolvency notices, capital-market disclosures and — most relevant here — the annual financial statements that corporations must disclose under § 325 HGB.

Before August 2022 those statements were published through the Bundesanzeiger. The DiRUG digitalisation reform made the Unternehmensregister the submission point for fiscal years beginning after 31 December 2021. It is now both where you file and where anyone can look up a company's published accounts.

For international users the register is the authoritative source: if you need to prove that a German entity has filed, or to obtain a subsidiary's or counterparty's official numbers, this is where they live. It is a single national portal rather than a patchwork of local court registers, which makes finding a company straightforward once you know its name or seat.

Registering to file

You need an account on the register's publication platform before you can submit.

Filing is done electronically through the register's publication platform. You create a user account, identify the company you are filing for (by registered court and HRB/HRA number), and confirm the person filing is authorised. There is no paper route — everything is submitted as structured data or documents online.

For a foreign managing director this is often the first friction point: the platform and its forms are German-only. Getting the company identifiers and the correct size-class classification right up front avoids rejected or mis-scoped submissions later.

How a submission works

Assemble the documents

Prepare the disclosure set for your size class — for a small company that is the balance sheet and reduced notes; for medium and large also the GuV, Lagebericht and auditor's report. The content must be in German and euros (§ 244 HGB).

Upload and classify

Upload the dataset, declare the size class (micro / small / medium / large) and the disclosure type — full publication or, for micro entities, deposit (Hinterlegung) under § 326 Abs. 2. Classification drives what actually becomes public.

Submit and confirm

Once submitted, the register processes the filing and — for publication — makes it retrievable. You receive confirmation; keep it as proof of timely filing against the § 325 HGB deadline.

After you file

  • Published statements become searchable at the Unternehmensregister, free for anyone to view.
  • Deposited micro-entity balance sheets are stored but not shown publicly — they are released only to third parties who request and pay for them.
  • Filing on time (within twelve months of the balance sheet date) closes off the § 335 HGB penalty risk for that year.
  • The filing is separate from your tax obligations — the E-Bilanz under § 5b EStG goes to the tax office via ELSTER, never to the Company Register.

How the software prepares the filing set

jahresabschluss.io generates the compliant German documents and the filing-ready dataset so you are not hand-building it in a German-only portal. The AI maps your trial balance to the HGB structure, applies the reliefs your size class allows, and outputs exactly what the register expects. You can register and explore the full flow for free before committing to a filing.

Frequently asked questions

What is the Unternehmensregister?

It is Germany's central company register (§ 8b HGB) and, since 2022, the single point where corporations file their annual financial statements and where the public retrieves them. It replaced the Bundesanzeiger as the filing destination.

How do I register to file my German accounts?

You create an account on the register's electronic publication platform, identify your company by its trade-register court and number, and confirm you are authorised to file. Submission is fully online; there is no paper option.

Is the Unternehmensregister the same as the Handelsregister?

No. The Handelsregister is the trade register at the local courts recording the company's existence and directors. The Unternehmensregister is the central platform that aggregates that data and hosts the disclosed annual accounts.

What is the deadline to file with the Unternehmensregister?

Twelve months after the balance sheet date (§ 325 HGB). Capital-market-oriented companies have four months. The deadline cannot be extended, and missing it triggers automatic penalty proceedings.

Can I file in English?

No. The filed documents must be in German and euros under § 244 HGB. English is only a convenience translation; jahresabschluss.io produces the binding German original and can show you an English view alongside it.