A draft bill to reduce bureaucracy aims to ease the burden on smaller businesses. The ZDH is not yet satisfied with the draft. (Photo: © lsaloni/123RF.com)
Read aloud:
The draft law to reduce bureaucracy promises fewer obligations for small businesses. It has now been passed by the Federal Cabinet.
No longer keeping all delivery notes, small-value invoices up to 200 euros and a small business limit of up to 20.000 euros: This is what the second Bureaucracy Relief Act promises, which the Federal Cabinet has decided to enter into force on 1 January 2017.
The Federal Ministry of Economics predicts that the law will relieve the economy by around 360 million euros, or almost ten million working hours annually. "This will primarily relieve the burden on those companies that typically suffer the most from bureaucracy: small businesses with two to three employees," explains Federal Minister for Economic Affairs Sigmar Gabriel.
The draft bill – which still has to be passed by the Bundestag and Bundesrat – provides for several simplifications: The retention periods for delivery notes are to be relaxed, the threshold for the quarterly submission of payroll tax returns is to be increased from €4.000 to €5.000, thus easing the burden primarily on businesses with few employees. The threshold for simplified invoices is to be increased from €150 to €200.
Furthermore, there are plans to simplify the procedure for calculating monthly social security contributions, which has been in place since 2006. Contributions whose actual value for the current month is not yet known can then be calculated based on the previous month's value. This simplified solution eliminates the need for previous estimates.
Craft policy
Operations management
Operations management
The Crafts Code is also being modernized: Chambers of Crafts will be able to include email addresses and websites in the register of craftsmen. The latter is particularly welcomed by the ZDH: "It was long overdue to adapt the permissible communication of the Chambers of Crafts with their members to digital developments."
The ZDH is rather reserved about the other changes. While it is pleased that small businesses in particular will be relieved of bureaucracy, it emphasizes: "This is correct, because these businesses are disproportionately affected by bureaucratic obligations due to their structure." ZDH Secretary General Holger SchwanneckeHowever, it is necessary to "supplement the good approaches of the draft law in the process in order to exploit further potential relief." The ZDH has put forward corresponding proposals.
Newsletter
Write a comment