Many things that are regulated in everyday life require a signature on paper. In the future, this should be done digitally more often or even be eliminated altogether – for example when traveling.
When staying in hotels within Germany, German citizens will soon no longer have to fill out a registration form. This is what the Traffic Light Coalition’s law passed by the Bundestag to reduce bureaucracy provides, which the Federal Council in Berlin approved. This regulates various bureaucratic relief for the economy and citizens. For companies, retention periods for copies of invoices, bank statements and payrolls are shortened from ten to eight years.
Digital tax assessments and more digital legal transactions via email, SMS or messenger message will also be possible, without the previously required “written form” with a handwritten signature. It is also regulated that employers no longer have to hand out the terms of employment contracts to future employees on paper with a signature – but this can also be done by email. Documents should also be made available online for general meetings of listed companies.
Federal Justice Minister Marco Buschmann (FDP) said that this would reduce the burden on the economy by a total of almost one billion euros per year. A large part of the measures contained in the law could come into force on January 1, 2025.
Source: Stern
