Posting Workers to and From Germany

Posting workers to and from Germany: the essentials

Posting workers across borders involves three separate legal questions: which employment law protections apply in the host country, which country's social security system covers the employee, and where wages are taxed.

For workers posted to Germany, the Posted Workers Act (Arbeitnehmer-Entsendegesetz, AEntG) makes core German working conditions mandatory from the first day, extends almost all German statutory and generally binding collectively agreed conditions after twelve months, and imposes registration duties in certain sectors. Social security is governed by the EU coordination rules, under which a posted employee can remain insured in the home country for up to 24 months if an A1 certificate is obtained. For employees posted from Germany abroad, German social security can continue under the same EU rules, under bilateral agreements or under the German rules on outward posting.

Errors are costly. The customs authority's Financial Control of Undeclared Work checks construction sites, logistics hubs and service providers, and fines can reach EUR 500,000 for underpayment. For employers posting workers into Germany, compliance must be organised before the first worker arrives, and German customers should know the rules too, because they share the liability.

Mandatory working conditions from day one

Under § 2(1) AEntG, the rules laid down in German statutes and regulations on the following working conditions apply mandatorily to employment relationships between an employer established abroad and its employees working in Germany:

• remuneration, including overtime rates, but excluding occupational pensions;
• paid minimum annual leave;
• maximum working hours, minimum rest periods and rest breaks;
• the conditions for hiring out workers, in particular by temporary work agencies;
• health, safety and hygiene at work, including requirements for accommodation provided by the employer;
• protective measures for pregnant women, new mothers, children and young people;
• equal treatment of men and women and other non-discrimination rules;
• allowances or reimbursement for travel, board and lodging for workers away from home for professional reasons.

In practice, the statutory minimum wage of EUR 13.90 per hour in 2026, the Working Time Act and the Federal Holidays Act apply to every posted worker. In sectors covered by generally binding collective agreements or minimum wage ordinances under the AEntG, such as construction, scaffolding, roofing, electrical trades, care and waste management, the higher sector minimum rates and conditions also apply. Our article on the minimum wage 2026 and 2027 sets out the general rates.

Long-term postings after twelve or eighteen months

The revised EU Posting of Workers Directive introduced a regime for long-term postings, which Germany implemented in § 13b AEntG. If an employee of a foreign employer works in Germany for more than twelve months, all working conditions laid down at the place of work in statutes, regulations and generally binding collective agreements apply in addition to the core conditions, with two exceptions: the procedural and formal rules for concluding and terminating employment, including post-contractual non-competes, and occupational pensions.

The employer can extend the twelve-month period to 18 months by submitting a reasoned notification in text form and in German to the customs authority before the twelve months expire. The notification must state the employees concerned, the place of work, the reasons for the longer posting and further information. Where one posted worker replaces another in the same job at the same place, the posting periods are added together, which prevents rotating workers to avoid the rules.

Checklist for posting workers to Germany

1. Identify the sector and any generally binding collective agreement or AEntG ordinance that sets higher minimum rates than the statutory minimum wage.
2. Check whether the sector is subject to customs registration and file the registration before work starts.
3. Obtain A1 certificates from the home institution for all posted workers before departure, or document that an application has been filed.
4. Adapt employment contracts or posting letters to German working time, leave and pay rules and calculate allowances correctly.
5. Set up working-time recording that meets the seven-day rule and keep documents in German at an accessible location in Germany.
6. Monitor posting periods per job and per worker to anticipate the twelve-month threshold and file an extension notification in time.
7. For non-EU nationals, check residence and work authorisation, including the rules for posting third-country nationals within the EU.

Following this sequence when posting workers keeps most inspections short and avoids the typical findings: missing registrations, incomplete time records and pay below the sector minimum.

Notifications and documentation for postings to Germany

Foreign employers whose employees work in sectors subject to customs controls must submit a registration in German to the customs authority before each assignment begins (§ 18(1) AEntG). The registration includes personal data of the workers, the start and expected duration of the work, the place of work, the location of documents in Germany, a responsible contact person and a person authorised to accept service. The same duty exists under § 16 MiLoG for the sectors listed in § 2a of the Act to Combat Undeclared Work, such as construction, hospitality, logistics, building cleaning, meat processing and trade fair construction. Registrations are made electronically through the federal reporting portal.

Employers must also keep records of working time, recorded no later than seven days after the work, and keep the employment contract, pay slips, time records and proof of payment available in Germany in German for the duration of the work, subject to the statutory maximum periods. Workers must carry identity documents on site in the sectors concerned. Missing documentation is one of the most frequent findings in customs inspections.

Liability of German customers and main contractors

German businesses that engage foreign service providers carry their own risks. Under § 14 AEntG, a business that commissions another business to perform work or services is liable like a guarantor who has waived the defence of prior recourse for the obligation of that business, its subcontractors and any agencies they use to pay the sector minimum wage and contributions to joint funds of the collective bargaining parties. The same applies to the general minimum wage via § 13 MiLoG. A business that knowingly or negligently uses contractors who underpay can also be fined.

Main contractors should therefore check subcontractors before awarding work, require confirmations of minimum pay compliance, reserve audit rights and the right to withhold payment, and limit chains of subcontracting. Where foreign workers are in fact integrated into the customer's organisation, the arrangement may be covert temporary agency work; see our article on temporary agency work.

Social security: A1 certificates and German rules

Within the EU, EEA and Switzerland, social security coordination is governed by Regulation (EC) No 883/2004. As a general rule, an employee is insured in the country where he or she works. A posted employee remains insured in the home country if the posting is not expected to exceed 24 months and the worker does not replace another posted worker, provided the employer normally carries on significant activities in the home country. The home country's institution issues a portable document A1 confirming the applicable legislation. German authorities and courts are generally bound by a valid A1 certificate. For employees working regularly in two or more countries, special rules determine a single applicable system.

For postings from Germany to countries outside the scope of EU coordination, German social security continues to apply if the posting takes place within a German employment relationship and is limited in advance by its nature or by contract (§ 4 SGB IV). For postings into Germany from such countries, German insurance does not apply under the same conditions (§ 5 SGB IV). Bilateral social security agreements, for example with the United States, India, Japan, Canada and Turkey, override these rules where they apply and typically allow home-country coverage for a fixed period.

In Germany, A1 certificates for outbound postings are applied for electronically through the payroll system with the health insurance fund or, for employees not insured in a statutory fund, with the competent institution. Business trips, even short ones, technically require an A1 certificate in many EU states, so groups with frequent travel should have a process in place.

Outbound postings and tax considerations

When German employers send employees abroad, they should decide whether the employee remains employed by the German entity under a secondment agreement, or is transferred to a local employer under a local contract with a dormant German contract. The secondment agreement should cover the duration, remuneration and allowances, tax equalisation, home leave, social security, return and termination. Host-country posting rules apply in the same way as the AEntG applies in Germany, and EU member states have their own notification portals.

Taxation follows separate rules. Under most double tax treaties, employment income is taxed in the state where the work is performed, unless the employee is present there for no more than 183 days in the relevant period, the remuneration is paid by an employer not resident in that state and it is not borne by a permanent establishment there. Long or repeated postings can also create a permanent establishment of the employer abroad, or of a foreign employer in Germany; see our article on permanent establishment risk. For non-EU nationals, the residence title is a further issue; our article on the EU Blue Card covers the most important route for specialists.

How TRW & Co helps with posting workers

We advise foreign employers posting workers to Germany and German employers sending staff abroad. Our work includes analysing applicable working conditions and sector minimum rates, preparing customs registrations and notifications for long-term postings, designing secondment and assignment agreements, and coordinating A1 certificates and bilateral agreements. We support German main contractors in structuring subcontractor compliance, and we represent clients in customs inspections and fine proceedings. Our immigration and global mobility team works with tax advisers on payroll and permanent establishment issues. To discuss a posting project, contact us. This article provides general information and is not legal advice.