German law dictates much of what a hiring contract must record. Here is the mandatory-terms checklist foreign employers need before the first German hire. Official references: Section 2 of the German Nachweisgesetz, Section 622 of the German Civil Code on notice periods and the Federal Ministry of Labour page on the statutory minimum wage. Pair this checklist with our guides on hiring employees in Germany: registration, payroll and EOR options and hiring your first employee in Europe.
Which terms does the Nachweisgesetz force you to record?
Section 2 of the German Evidence Act (Nachweisgesetz) lists the essential working conditions every employer must document: the parties, start date, duration for fixed-term roles, workplace, job description, any probation period, the composition and due date of pay, working hours, breaks and shift systems, on-call and overtime arrangements, annual leave, any training entitlement, occupational pension provider details, the termination procedure including notice periods, and references to applicable collective agreements. A foreign employer is not exempt because the company sits abroad; the duty attaches to employment in Germany.
What deadlines and form rules apply since 2025?
The record is staggered: core items such as the parties, pay and working hours are due on day one, further items within seven calendar days, the rest within one month. Since 1 January 2025 the record may be provided in text form and transmitted electronically, provided the employee can access, store and print it and the employer requests a receipt confirmation; on request, a signed paper version must still be issued. A properly signed written contract containing all required items satisfies the duty in one document. Breaches are administrative offences with fines of up to 2,000 euros per violation.
Which statutory floors override the contract text?
Whatever the contract says, statutory minimums win. The general minimum wage is 13.90 euros per hour from 1 January 2026 and rises to 14.60 euros from 1 January 2027, and it applies to foreign employers whose staff work in Germany. Working-time limits, paid statutory leave of 24 working days on the legal six-day-week basis, equivalent to 20 days on a five-day week, and sick-pay rules also apply regardless of drafting. A clause below these floors is simply unenforceable and invites disputes and back-pay claims.
What notice periods must the contract respect?
Section 622 of the Civil Code sets the baseline: four weeks to the fifteenth or the end of a calendar month for both sides. During an agreed probation period of at most six months, two weeks suffice. Employer notice then extends with tenure, from one month after two years of service up to seven months after twenty years. Contracts may not undercut these periods to the employee's detriment, and the employee's own notice may not be longer than the employer's. Cross-check any template imported from another jurisdiction.
How should probation and fixed terms be drafted?
Probation must be agreed expressly and may not exceed six months. Fixed-term contracts carry a sharp formal trap: the fixed term itself must be agreed in written form before the start date, and the 2025 relaxations for the terms record did not remove this requirement. A fixed term signed only after work has begun, or agreed merely by email, risks converting the role into an indefinite contract. For fixed-term roles, any probation period must also be proportionate to the contract duration.
What do foreign employers without a German entity get wrong?
The two classic errors are sequencing and governing law. The contract is only one layer: employer registrations, wage-tax withholding and social-insurance enrolment must exist before the first payroll run, whether through your own entity or an employer-of-record setup. And choosing a foreign governing law does not strip a Germany-based employee of mandatory German protections; for work habitually performed in Germany, the statutory floors above apply anyway. Draft to German law from the start instead of litigating the difference later.
What belongs on the pre-hire checklist?
Before signing: confirm the full Nachweisgesetz catalog is covered in one signed document; check pay against the current minimum wage and any sector collective agreement; verify notice clauses against section 622; put fixed terms in wet-ink or qualified-signature written form; define workplace and any remote-work arrangement; name the pension provider where relevant; and prepare the German-language version employees, authorities and courts will actually work with. Then align payroll registrations so the first salary run is compliant, not retrofitted.
FAQ
Can the employment terms be issued electronically now?
Yes, since 1 January 2025 the terms record can be provided in text form and sent electronically if it is accessible, storable and printable and a receipt is requested. Fixed-term agreements themselves still require written form.
Does a foreign governing-law clause avoid German employment rules?
No. For work habitually performed in Germany, mandatory protections such as minimum wage, statutory leave and notice periods apply regardless of the chosen law.
What is the penalty for skipping the Nachweisgesetz record?
An incomplete, late or missing record is an administrative offence and can be fined with up to 2,000 euros per violation, and it weakens the employer in any later dispute about what was agreed.
To set up compliant German contracts, registrations and payroll for your first hire, see Corpenza hiring and payroll services — contact Corpenza.
This is general information, not legal or tax advice. Collective agreements, works-council rules and case law can change the analysis for a specific hire.
