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Guide · Germany · Working time

Working time recording in Germany: the duty already applies today

Venheim editorial team

Updated 10 min read

Recording working time is already mandatory in Germany — not only once the planned ArbZG reform arrives: since 2019 the Court of Justice of the EU has required a system for recording daily working time, and in September 2022 the Federal Labour Court (BAG) ruled that this duty already exists under § 3(2) no. 1 ArbSchG. The form is open — paper or Excel are enough too.

“We’ll wait until the law comes” is the most expensive mistake about time recording in Germany. This guide explains why the duty has existed for a while, which three rules apply side by side today, what breaches can cost and where the reform currently stands — factually and without scaremongering.

Two decisions, one duty

Unlike in Austria, the general duty to record in Germany is not set out in a single section of a statute — it follows from two court decisions, and both are law in force, not a vision of the future.

CJEU, 14 May 2019

Case C-55/18: member states must require employers to set up an objective, reliable and accessible system that measures the daily working time of each employee.

BAG, 13 September 2022

Decision 1 ABR 22/21: this duty already exists in Germany — under § 3(2) no. 1 ArbSchG, interpreted in line with EU law. No new statute is needed for it.

Today

The start, end and duration of daily working time have to be recorded. The form is still open — the legislative process on electronic recording is under way.

What applies today — three rules side by side

The BAG duty is the general level. Alongside it are two older, explicit recording duties that matter especially for hospitality — they apply independently of each other, and the strictest one wins.

All employees

§ 3(2) no. 1 ArbSchG (as interpreted by the BAG): record the start, end and duration of daily working time. No particular technology is prescribed — it has to be prompt and traceable.

Overtime

§ 16(2) ArbZG: all working time beyond eight hours on a working day must be recorded, together with the list of consents under § 7(7) ArbZG. The records must be kept for at least two years.

Hospitality & minijobs

§ 17 MiLoG: record start, end and duration by the end of the seventh calendar day after the work at the latest, keep for two years — for minijobs (except private households) and the sectors of § 2a SchwarzArbG.

The point often overlooked in hospitality: the restaurant and accommodation trade is expressly on the sector list of § 2a SchwarzArbG, the German act against undeclared work. For a restaurant, café or bar, § 17 MiLoG therefore applies to the entire team — not just to minijobs. The seven-day deadline and the two-year retention have long been explicit statutory duties there, no reform needed.

What missing records can cost

Fines (as of August 2026)

Missing or incorrect overtime records are an administrative offence with a fine of up to €30,000 (§ 22(1) no. 9 ArbZG). Breaches of § 17 MiLoG — which is exactly hospitality — can cost up to €50,000 (§ 21(1) no. 8 MiLoG); customs carries out the checks. The general BAG duty is currently not directly subject to a fine — but the occupational safety authority can order recording, and anyone who breaches an enforceable order risks up to €30,000 (§ 25 ArbSchG).

The bigger risk: a dispute

Without records, a business negotiates a dispute about overtime from the weaker position: whoever cannot prove when people worked has little to set against the other side's account. Then there are social insurance and payroll tax audits that want to see the hours reported. Prompt, tamper-resistant recording takes the fear out of both.

The reform: electronic is meant to become the rule

As of August 2026: in June 2026 the Federal Ministry of Labour (BMAS) presented a draft bill amending the Working Hours Act (ArbZG). It is meant to write the existing duty to record expressly into the ArbZG and to make electronic recording of start, end and duration — as a rule on the day the work is done — the standard; transition periods by business size and exemptions for small businesses are still being negotiated. Nothing has been passed: the draft is at the start of the legislative process, and a previous draft from 2023 never became law.

In practice, waiting changes nothing — the duty already exists, only the form is open. If you record electronically today, you will most likely not have to change anything when the reform comes. As soon as it is passed, this guide will be updated.

Trust-based working time stays — and so does recording

Trust-based working time means the business does not control when people work — when someone starts and stops is up to them. It does not release anyone from recording: start, end and duration still have to be recorded so that maximum working hours and rest periods can be checked. The two go well together if employees record themselves and the business only looks when there is a breach.

Austria in brief

In Austria the duty to record has long been set out explicitly: § 26 AZG requires the start, end and rest breaks to be recorded continuously — with administrative fines per person affected. What applies there in detail is in its own guide, linked below.

Keep it digital with Venheim

Venheim records exactly what the duty requires: your team clocks start, end and breaks on their own phone — promptly and tamper-resistant, every change only with a reason and a log entry. Working hours go to payroll as a CSV, or on request as DATEV movement data for the payroll export. Start for free, no payment details.

Clock in and out with one tap on your own phone — the record builds up while you work, not at the end of the month.Demo data from the sample business Cafe Sunshine, app shown in German
Start free

Try Premium for 30 days, no payment details. After that your business carries on free on the Start plan; records stay readable and exportable.

The sign-up form is in German for now. Inside the app, everyone picks their own language — nine languages, English included.

Important: not legal advice

This guide gives a general overview and is expressly not legal advice. The legal position can change — the ArbZG reform in particular is in motion — and depends on your business, applicable collective agreements and the individual case. If in doubt, contact your chamber of commerce (IHK), an employment lawyer or the responsible occupational safety authority.

Related

Working time recording in AustriaWhat § 26 AZG requires: start, end, breaks, rest periods — and which fines apply when records are missing.Time tracking by phoneA time clock with a location check, tamper-resistant, export for payroll and records included.Time tracking in a gymIn and out with one tap on their own phone; everyone sees their own balance and remaining holiday.Time tracking in retailA time clock for part-timers and Saturday temps: in and out with person and time, plus tasks per shift.

Frequently asked questions

Does the duty apply to small businesses too?
Yes. The duty under § 3(2) no. 1 ArbSchG has no size threshold — the Occupational Safety and Health Act applies to every employer, even one with two employees. The reform draft only discusses relief for small businesses in the form of recording (electronic or not), not in the duty itself. In hospitality, § 17 MiLoG applies anyway, and it doesn't ask about the size of the business either.
Does it apply to minijobs?
Yes, and for minijobs even with a fixed deadline: § 17 MiLoG requires the start, end and duration of the daily working time of marginally employed staff to be recorded by the end of the seventh following calendar day at the latest and kept for at least two years — only minijobs in private households are exempt. Breaches can be fined up to €50,000 (§ 21 MiLoG, as of August 2026). The general duty to record under the Occupational Safety and Health Act applies alongside.
Is an Excel sheet or paper enough?
Today, yes: neither the Occupational Safety and Health Act nor the BAG decision prescribes a particular form — paper or Excel meet the duty too, as long as start, end and duration are recorded completely and traceably. The honest caveat: lists filled in afterwards can be changed at any time and carry little weight in a dispute about overtime, and the ministry's draft for the ArbZG reform makes electronic recording the rule. If you are setting up from scratch, it makes sense to go electronic straight away.
Does the boss have to do the recording personally?
No. The duty requires a system — not that the manager makes every entry personally. Recording may be delegated to the employees; the responsibility for keeping it complete stays with the employer. The owner's own working time does not have to be recorded — the duty protects employees. What works in practice: everyone clocks in themselves, and the manager sees gaps and corrects them with a record.
What about trust-based working time?
Trust-based working time (Vertrauensarbeitszeit) remains possible — it means the business does not control when people work, not that it stops recording. Start, end and duration still have to be recorded so that maximum working hours and rest periods can be checked. Anyone who delegates recording to employees needs a way to spot breaches — a system nobody looks at does not serve the purpose.
How does the legal position differ from Austria?
Austria has the explicit statutory rule that Germany is only now building: § 26 AZG has long required the start, end and rest breaks to be recorded continuously — with administrative fines per person affected. In Germany the duty follows from the Occupational Safety and Health Act as interpreted by the Court of Justice of the EU and the Federal Labour Court; so far only overtime (§ 16 ArbZG) and the minijob and sector cases of § 17 MiLoG are regulated by specific statutes. In practice it comes to the same thing in both countries: start, end, duration — prompt and reliable.

Sources

About Venheim

Venheim is operations software for hospitality, studios and retail — built inside a real business and used there every day. Every feature and every guide comes from that daily work and is tested against it. More about Venheim. Not legal advice — where in doubt, the authority, the chamber or a law firm has the final word.